AN INVESTIGATION OF THE LEISURE READING HABITS OF STUDENTS IN SOME NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES

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AN INVESTIGATION OF THE LEISURE READING HABITS OF STUDENTS IN SOME NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES 

KEHINDE A. AYOOLA

Department of English, ObafemiAwolowo University, Ile-Ife
Email: kehinday77@yahoo.co.uk
Tel. 08056342354

and

SALIHU NURAT BASAMBO

Department of English, University of Ilorin, Ilorin
basamboalnur@yahoo.com; 09157048482 

Abstract

Nigerian educators, especially language teachers often complain that their students underachieve mainly because many of them have poor reading habits. It has been observed that many Nigerian children grow into adulthood without developing much interest in leisure reading. This paper investigates the truth or otherwise of the hypothesis that Nigerian university students do not sufficiently engage in leisure reading activities and this impacts negative, not only on their proficiency in English, but on their overall academic performance. Data was gathered through the administration of questionnaires to four hundred students in four Southwest and North Central Nigerian universities, two from each region. The  results of the study reveal that most Southwest and North Central Nigerian university students do not devote sufficient time to leisure reading activity because they do not consider it important enough for their personal development and academic attainment. The findings also show that many Nigerian university students have negative attitudes, at worst, or lukewarm attitude at best, towards newspapers, magazines and other leisure reading materials. The study further observes that the time available for leisure reading activities by Nigerian students has been severely reduced by vocational activities and other leisure activities, especially the social media. The paper concludes that tertiary institutions should make leisure reading materials such as novels, newspapers and magazines more accessible to students. Universities should encourage the founding of reading clubs and stocking of libraries, reading rooms and common rooms with dailies, weekly and monthly periodical that interest young people. 

Keywords: fiction and non-fiction materials, leisure reading, Literacy, Nigerian university students, reading club. 

DOI: 10.36349/zamijoh.2023.v02i01.002

Introduction

Leisure reading, also known as recreational reading, pleasure reading, free voluntary reading, and independent reading, refers to independent, self-selected reading of a continuous text for a wide range of personal and social purposes (Onukaogu, et al, 2003). It can take place in and out of school, at any time. Readers select from a wide range of extended texts, including but not exclusive to narrative fiction, nonfiction, picture books, e-books, magazines, social media, blogs, websites, newspapers, comic books, and graphic novels. Leisure reading is generally intrinsically or socially motivated and a pleasurable activity for the reader. Leisure reading by tertiary institution students can be defined as all forms of reading activities engaged by students outside the college or university curriculum. Examples include magazines, a broad range of fiction and nonfiction books and other general reading materials.

It is for this reason that many good Nigerian schools stock their libraries with daily newspapers, magazines and other leisure reading materials that help students to update themselves and improve their reading proficiency. Although there is an explosion in the number of primary and secondary schools in Nigeria, many of them do not have standard libraries and reading rooms where students could access leisure reading materials. Consequently, many children grow into adulthood without developing any real interest in leisure reading. The average Nigerian tertiary institution students are so indigent that they could hardly afford to purchase novels, magazines and newspapers (Lasisi&Adeyanju 1991). Consequently, today’s Nigerian university students are hardly seen wielding romance or thriller novels that were popular with the older generation of students. Notwithstanding the fact that teachers frowned at the reading of such books in the past, contemporary English teachers would have been happier if the present generation of students read such books instead of reading almost nothing.

According to Collie and Slatter (2000), literature is an authentic and motivating avenue for improving critical perspectives and general communication skills among students especially in English as a Second Language (ESL) situations. Chiang (2007) report several benefits that students derived from literature. Such benefits include the ability to express themselves purposefully and enhance their reading comprehension. It also stimulates them to become active learners instead of rote learners. There is ample evidence to prove that tertiary institution students are sufficiently motivated to sharpen their reading skills as supervising bodies, prominent among which is the National Universities Commission (NUC), monitor closely the stocking and updating of library books in Nigerian universities.

Aside from the literary texts on the reading list of most Nigerian schools, elite parents and teachers often encourage their wards to read widely because of the obvious benefits derived from such practice. However, such parents and teachers are in the minority in Nigeria. Admonition by teachers engenders regular visits by students to their institution’s library to browse encyclopaedias and peruse other educative books. Some students also buy or borrow novels from friends, read newspaper reports online and engage in other leisure reading activities. Leisure reading is a veritable channel for the mastery of cognitive skills such as vocabulary and grammar; and mechanical skills such as spellings and punctuation, by most learners of English as a second language (Onukaogu, et al, 2003).

It is an established fact that avid readers often come out at the top of their class because they comprehend texts faster and deeper and they often express themselves clearer and better. Scholars such as King (2001) and Gilbert (2003) have reached the consensus that literature is conducive to bringing about greater reading interest and enhanced reading comprehension. This is why the continued decline in the reading interest and abilities of Nigerian students remain a source of great concern to educators in the country.  This deficiency is evident in the general decline in literacy skills amongst Nigerian secondary school leavers, university undergraduates and even many university degree holders.

Unfortunately, leisure reading is on the decline not only in Nigeria, but globally. Results from international surveys of reading conducted across countries suggest that variation in reading achievement is related to motivation, engagement, and enjoyment of reading (Mullis et al., 2012). Young people who view reading as enjoyable and read outside of class on a daily basis are much more likely to experience success as readers. In a U.S. study, high school students who regularly engaged in leisure reading scored significantly higher in reading than did peers who did not regularly read for pleasure (National Center for Education Statistics, 2011).

There have been many studies on the reading culture of primary and secondary school students in Nigeria and beyond (e.g. Emenyonu 1983; Odejide 1991; Lasisi&Adeyanju 1993; Arua and Lederer, 2003, among others). However, leisure reading amongst undergraduate students in Nigerian universities have not been sufficiently explored. This is the gap this study set out to fill. The paper investigates the truth or otherwise of the hypothesis that Nigerian university students do not sufficiently engage in leisure reading activities and this negative impacts, not only on their proficiency in English, but on their overall academic performance.

Students’ Leisure Reading Habits

According to Odejide (1993, p. 14), reading habit is a “cultivation of attitudes and the possession of skills which make reading a pleasurable, regular and constant activity”. In her study of the development of reading through children’s literature, she identified different stages that can be used to create reading awareness such as story-reading and story-telling, extending books through drama, writing music and many more. She further avers that negative feelings against reading for pleasure can be traced to inadequate preparation of children for the acquisition of appropriate reading habits, low adult literacy rates and non-availability of leisure books and other reading materials. She further claims that reading for pleasure usually decreases when students reach high school; hence students should be made to develop interest in books before they leave the primary school.

In a study on the reading preferences of adolescents in Nigeria, Emenyonu (1983) surveyed the reading interests of junior secondary schools students in two states in Nigeria. Her study was motivated by Floyd’s (1973) investigation, which focused on the factors that affect the reading habits of students, viz.: access to reading materials; home and socio-economic background; the community, including the public library; early experience with reading; present reading ability; and age. More perspectives on the reading preferences of Nigerian students can be found in the study of Lasisi and Adeyanju (1991) who investigated the effect of economic status on the reading preferences of Nigerian primary school pupils. Likewise, Arua and Lederer’s (2003) investigation of the reading culture in high school students in Botswana reveals a lot about the reading habits of students in the country. Very much like the results of their Nigerian counterpart, 78% of secondary school students in Botswana claimed to read to gain knowledge for the purpose of passing examination only, while only 18% admitted that they read for leisure.

According to the statistics published by Taiwan Education Panel Survey (TEPS, 2004, cited by Chiang, 2007), 44% of Taiwanese high school students hardly spent any of their spare time on leisure reading. Twenty-five percent (25%) of them spent less than an hour per week reading; 19% spent one to two hours reading; only 2% of the population read for between four and six hours per week. Despite the fact that Taiwan Minister of Education has endeavoured to promote reading, the decline in reading interest still prevails among Taiwanese youngsters. Chiang (2007) observes further that the decline in the reading habits of Taiwanese youth’s was reflected in their reading comprehension test scores.

A number of recent studies have focused on identifying factors that influence the development of positive attitudes towards reading amongst secondary school students (e.g. Bintz, 1993, and Walberg & Tsai, 1983). Studies have shown that what parents do in their homes (their literacy environment) significantly affect the development of positive attitudes towards reading by their children. The home literacy environments include books, newspapers, letters, junk mail and events. A positive attitude towards reading among adolescents included the belief that reading is important and enjoyable (Walberg and Tsai, 1983).

Bintz (1993) observed that secondary school students identified the presence of positive role models (parents, grandparents, siblings, friends, neighbours, relatives) as one of the factors responsible for their love of reading. Bintz reported that these role models created “reading families” or “communities of readers” whose members valued and supported reading. Kubis’ (1994, cited by Chiang 2007, p. 170) investigated factors influencing attitude development. She concluded that students attribute their positive attitudes toward reading to a significant event or person. According to Kubis, students who were read to as children and who owned personal book collections had more positive attitudes towards reading than those who did not. Also, in her study, families of students with positive attitudes toward reading received more magazines at an earlier age than the families of those with negative attitudes. Another event that influenced positive attitude development was visiting the public library and possessing a library card.

Metsala (1996) reported that one factor that contributes to a successful educative experience in school is the children’s literacy-related home experiences. Metsala identified a common core of characteristics associated with positive reading outcomes. They include readily available children’s books, frequent reading to children, special space and opportunities for reading, positive parental attitudes, frequent visits to libraries, and many parent-child conversations.

Researchers have most often examined adolescents’ reading habits through surveys and interviews. Several studies have, for example, investigated why adolescents read for leisure. An English study (Nestle Family Monitor, 2003; cited by Chiang, 2007) found that approximately 50 % of the 11 – 18 year old adolescents surveyed described reading as relaxing, 50 % as helping to understand others, 40% as educational, 33% as fun, 25% as supporting learning, and another 25% as boring. The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) (Mullis et al., 2012) survey of 10-year-olds reported that although 74% of students described themselves as motivated readers, on average, only 28% actually liked to read. Similarly, a 2012 survey by the National Literacy Trust of the United Kingdom (Clark, 2013) found that just over half of young people aged 8–16 enjoyed reading very much or quite a lot, and 12.2% did not enjoying reading at all. Just over half (56%) read outside of school at least a few times a week.

Between 2005 and 2012, the proportion of survey respondents who reported enjoying reading very much or quite a lot decreased slightly (from 51.4% to 50.3%). The likelihood that children and young adults will enjoy reading and engage in leisure reading outside of school is influenced by a number of factors, including their gender, age, and reading ability. Trends in young people’s leisure reading habits and enjoyment of reading with respect to these factors are outlined below. Surveys of children and young adults over many decades and across continents have shown that girls are more likely than boys to enjoy reading and to spend more time reading beyond the reading requirements of schoolwork (Clark, 2013).

However, in the 2012 PIRLS study (Mullis et al., 2012), there were fewer achievement differences between the genders when the reading passages were informational text. These findings suggest that daily engagement with a balanced range of text genres and modes of texts, in both nonfiction and fiction texts, has the potential to motivate and engage both boys and girls. Age. The results from the 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment conducted with 15-year-olds suggest that enjoyment of reading declines as students advance through school. Over one third of students reported that they did not read for enjoyment, 41% indicated that they read only when they had to, 24% considered reading to be a waste of time, and only one third agreed or strongly agreed that reading is their favourite hobby (Mullis et al., 2012) 

This trend was repeated in the U.K. National Trust’s survey (Clark, 2013), as younger children (64% of 8–11-year-olds) were more likely than older children (45.5% of 11–14-year-olds and 36.3% of 14–16-year-olds) to indicate their enjoyment of reading as “very much” or “a lot.” Results of a large sample survey conducted with middle-grade students in the United States suggest that attitudes toward recreational reading tended to decline as students progressed through the grades in school (McKenna, Conradi, Lawrence, Jang, & Meyer, 2012). We can see that poor reading habit is more of a global than a local or national problem; hence it is not peculiar to the English as a second language situation like Nigeria alone.

Because struggling readers tend to read less during and beyond the school day, they are in need of additional opportunities for leisure reading (Miller & Moss, 2013). They also need support in selecting books. Often, struggling readers select books that are too difficult for them, become frustrated, and lose interest in reading (Donovan, Smolkin, & Lomax, 2000). When struggling readers engage in leisure reading and receive support for selecting books (Reutzel, Fawson, & Smith, 2008), time to read outside of school (Allington, 2009), and opportunities to discuss books, they make gains in reading achievement (Kamil, 2008). Additionally, e-books provide scaffolding for struggling readers through customizable features such as text-to-speech functionality, font size variation, a built-in dictionary, and the possibility to annotate the text through digital think marks (Dwyer & Larson, 2014) and adjust the readability level of the text.

From the empirical studies reviewed above, it is clear that the leisure reading habits of Nigerian university students have not been given much attention by scholars. Aside from elucidating the reading habits of university undergraduates in Southwestern and North Central Nigeria, the study is expected to contribute to knowledge on the reasons why Nigerian university students exhibit poor communicative competence in their use of English. This is the gap that this study was designed to fill.

Methodology

Data was gathered through the administration of questionnaires to 100 students in each of four Southwest and North Central Nigerian universities, two were government-owned while the other two were private-owned and faith-based. The universities were ObafemiAwolowo University, Ile-Ife; Bowen University, Iwo; University of Ilorin, Ilorin; and Al-Hikmah University, Ilorin. These universities were chosen because their student population is representative of South-western and North Central Nigerian university studentship. The results from these two geo-political regions can safely be used to generalise for the entire Nigerian nation.

A questionnaire was administered to equal number of male and female 300 level undergraduate students towards the end of the first semester. This category of students were chosen because they were considered to have spent at least three years in a university setting. The purpose of the questionnaire was to record the leisure reading habits of the Nigerian university students. Issues covered by the questionnaire include the preferred language of leisure reading materials; the favourite leisure reading materials; the preferred size of novels, the preferred authors; reasons for their choices and other factors that affect leisure reading amongst university students. 

Respondents were randomly selected from the common rooms in halls of residence and arenas where students hung out when they were not having lectures. Of the 400 respondents, 177 originated from South-western Nigeria, a predominantly Yoruba speaking area; 98 were from North Central Nigeria where languages spoken include Yoruba, Idoma, Ebira and Idoma, among others; 68 were from South-eastern Nigeria where Igbo is the major mother tongue; 32 were from the South-south where Ishan, Efik, Ijaw and Ibibio are mother tongue languages. The remaining 25 respondents were from Northeastern and Northwestern Nigeria where Hausa, Fulfude, Kanuri, Tiv and other languages are dominant.

Findings and Discussion

On the question that leisure reading affected their fluency in English, 55% strongly agreed, 34% agreed, 6% disagreed while 5% strongly disagreed. Fifty seven percent (57%) of the respondents admitted that leisure reading enhanced their knowledge of English grammar, 43% indicated that it didn’t matter. On their preferred language of leisure reading materials, 68% of the respondents indicated that English was their preferred language of leisure reading, 23% indicated that they preferred Arabic materials, while 9% indicated that they preferred reading in their native language. The reason most of them gave for this lopsidedness was that most available reading materials were in the English language. Seventy-seven percent (77%) indicated that leisure reading broadened their knowledge, 43% stated that it was refreshing and entertaining, while 29% indicated that it was good for their vocabulary development.

On the question “How many novels have you read during the semester?” 64% of the respondent indicated that they had read less than three novels; only 8% indicated that they had read up to ten novels; while only 6% said they had read more than ten novels. However, 22% indicated that they didn’t engage in leisure reading at all. This percentage was considered rather uncomfortably too high as university education is expected to be more of all-round education than mere specialisation in a narrow field. On newspaper reading, 40% admitted that they hardly read them; 41% indicated that they read them once or twice a week; 10% wrote that they read them daily while 8% said that they read them only once a month.

With the above scenario, the practical application of the English language by Southwest and North Central Nigerian university undergraduates is severely circumscribed by their limited exposure to the language. This observation validates the often touted view that many Nigerian graduates do not display English language proficiency that is commensurate to their level of educational attainment.  Students who engage in substantial leisure reading activity are more likely to perform better at job interviews than their peers who do not read widely.  Such candidates are also likely to have an edge at the oral interview because they are better equipped to use the language with greater confidence and a higher degree of correctness and accuracy than their counterpart with limited reading repertoire. This is inevitably so because vocabulary choice and command of the grammar of English are aided considerably by wider leisure reading activity. This finding conforms to Arua (2003) that learning a new word a day helps students to develop an abiding interest in leisure reading so that when they grow up, it will become impossible for them to break the habit.

            On the type of magazines they read, the respondents indicated their preferences as follows: entertainment, 44%; personal/professional development, 25%; Political, 18%; others, 10%. The above analysis shows that most students chose entertainment above other types of magazines. This is not unexpected because the respondents were mainly young adults. The students’ favouriteleisure reading materials can be summarised as follows: Romance, 8%; Science fiction, 9%; Non-fiction, 15%; Christian fiction, 26% crime/detective/etc., 15%; others, 27%. From the above analysis, romance, science fiction, Christian fiction and crime/detective all fall under “fiction”. This means that 64% of the preferred leisure reading materials fall under the heading, “fiction”. Like magazines, fiction books basically serve entertainment purposes; hence it is clear from the analysis that students love entertaining leisure reading materials. The response to what the students like reading, which has been analysed in this paragraph, contradicts the analysis in previous paragraphs, which centres on their actual leisure reading activity. The question that could be generated from this analysis is: Why are the students not doing enough leisure reading?

The time available for students for leisure reading is often affected by socializing, 40%; video and television, 39%; religious activities, 28%; the Internet, 17%; sports and physical exercises, 11%. Young adults are renowned for engaging in a wide variety of leisure activities. From the above, we can deduce that students spend much of their leisure time in social, religious and other physical activities. There is also evidence that much time is devoted to the electronic media. With easier access to the Internet, MP3s, VCDs and DVDs by many students, the time available for leisure reading activity has been severely curtailed. Consequently, exciting opportunities, wider range of choices at the touch of a button and audiovisual flexibility of the electronic media can be held partially responsible for the gradual decline of interest in reading activities by North Central Nigerian undergraduates.

Conclusion

The study validates the hypothesis that North Central Nigerian university students do not sufficiently engage in leisure reading. The study has shown the reading preferences of North Central Nigerian university students and this could be used to generalise for Nigerian students. The study also revealed that North Central Nigerian University students did not spend sufficient time on leisure reading because of a host of competing activities such as the listening to music, watching television, surfing the Internet and engagement in other forms of socialising and religious activities. It is generally acknowledged that positive reading habits lead to positive reading experiences, which, in turn, lead to higher academic performance. On the other hand, a decline in reading interest is bound to have a negative influence on students’ English reading proficiency, which in turn affects their acquisition of the productive skills of speaking and writing as users of English as a second language.

Inyang and Onukaogu (2003) suggest setting up reading clubs in schools and colleges as a solution to the poor reading habit of Nigerian students in general. According to them, “one way by which we can make reading fun and exciting is by forming reading clubs and using the clubs to promote communal reading, fun and excitement” (p. 196) amongst young people. In view of this, leisure reading could be made more accessible to university students through the promotion and funding of reading clubs in universities and other forums where students can meet regularly to share what they read and borrow leisure reading materials.

Policymakers and administrators should not require teachers to conduct formal assessments of leisure reading. In place of formal assessments, teachers should anecdotally record their observations of students’ engagement with texts and the range of texts they select for leisure reading. Listening to students’ conversations or reading their blog interactions and reflections provides anecdotal evidence of their understanding and enjoyment of what they are reading.

A research into the reading habits of students has relevance for lecturers, university librarians and curriculum planners. Understanding how students feel about reading early in their academic careers may allow lecturers to construct courses and employ instructional strategies that enhance positive reading attitudes. Leisure reading materials such as novels, newspapers and magazines should be made more accessible to students by making such materials readily available in university libraries, reading rooms and common rooms, on one hand; and by subsidising their sale in university bookshops and newsstands on university campuses, on the other.

 

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