Predictors Of Attitudes Towards French Language In Junior Secondary Schools In Oredo Local Government Area Of Edo State, Nigeria

For years, “Comment tu t’appelle?” and the response, “Je m’appelle…” has remained a famous lingo among young Nigerians, who were taught the French language at the basic education level. To most Nigerian students, these are the only words they can remember in the language. What makes the issue disgusting is the fact that this subject (French) was introduced into the Nigerian school system as far back as 1859 when other topics like the English language, Mathematics, Sciences etc. were introduced. In additional to address this lukewarm attitude towards this subject, there is a need to determine the factors that predict it. Three hypotheses were raised for the study. The correlational survey design was employed for the study. The population for the study consists of all the 6534 junior secondary 3 students in public schools. Six hundred students consisted of the sample size. The instrument for the study is the questionnaire titled Attitudes Towards French Language Questionnaire (ATFLQ). The data collected were analyzed using linear regression statistics. Findings of the study revealed that the three factors (societal value, instructional materials and method of teaching) hypothesized are significant predictors of French language learning. Based on the findings, recommendations were made amongst which is that since communication competency is one of the problems of the students, teachers as a matter of policy, should teach French language employing the learner- centered methods that will make students participate/speak the language in class.