Evaluating the Reading Proficiency of Pupils in Upper Classes of Primary Schools in Abeokuta Metropolis

Abstract

Intellectual excellence in reading is fundamental and is a firm prerequisite for overall achievement in school. Hence, when no such solid provision is provided to the poor reader for the achievement of academic learning, that student is finally frustrated and deemed a failure. As many scholars claim, academic achievement in all courses requires this literary ability. Unfortunately, some of the pupils in the upper elementary school classes in Nigeria have been found to read exceptionally poorly, which means they might not be able to distinguish many words to the extent that they would be expected to. This study adopted the developmental survey design to employ the use of an interview questionnaire to collect primary data from a sample size of 40 teachers. A reading exercise was also carried out on 60 students in four schools within the Abeokuta Metropolis. The result of the study reveals that the reading proficiency of pupils in the upper classes of primary schools in Abeokuta Metropolis is fair. This is owing to   the factors of mother tongue, class composition and size, standard of living of families of primary school pupils and teaching competence across all levels of primary school education.