Exploring Teachers Perceptions of Integrating Literature into the English Language Curriculum for Junior Secondary Schools in Kwara State Nigeria

This study investigated the availability of the English Language curriculum in junior secondary schools and explored teachers’ perceptions of how Literature-in-English can be integrated into the Junior Secondary School (JSS) English studies curriculum. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design. The population of the study comprised all English language teachers in JSS in Kwara State. A total of 100 English Language teachers were selected from 30 secondary schools in Kwara State, Nigeria, using purposive sampling. Data were collected through a validated, researcher-designed instrument titled “Perception of Teachers’ on how literature can be integrated into the English Language Curriculum (PTQLIEC)”. Data analysis was conducted using descriptive statistics of frequency counts, percentages, mean and standard deviation. Findings revealed that 28 out of 30 schools had access to the JSS English Language curriculum, indicating a high level of curriculum availability. Additionally, 66.6% of teachers strongly agreed that blending language and literature would help achieve integration in the English studies curriculum, while 63% believed that a Language Arts framework could serve as a viable strategy for achieving integration. It was concluded that the teaching of English Language and Literature is still done separately in the JSS curriculum. It was recommended among others that there is a need for an integrative curriculum model unifying linguistic and literary discourse to promote English language learning outcomes.