ABSTRACT

This study was carried out to examine  story telling and the acquisition of  moral values among pupils in public primary schools using Yenagoa Local Government Area, Bayelsa State as a case study.The study is was specifically carried out find out the extent moral education is being implemented in public primary schools in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State, determine the whether teachers adopts the storytelling strategy in teaching moral education in public primary schools in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State, and ascertain whether the use of storytelling helps to inculcate moral values among primary school pupils in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State. The survey design was adopted and the simple random sampling techniques were employed in this study. The population size comprise of teachers of some selected  public primary school in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State. In determining the sample size, the researcher purposefully selected 57 respondents and 50 were validated. Self-constructed and validated questionnaire was used for data collection. The collected and validated questionnaires were analyzed using frequency tables. While the hypotheses were tested using Pearson Correlation statistical tool, SPSS v23. The result of the findings reveals that the extent moral education is being taught in public primary schools in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State is low.The study also revealed that the use of storytelling help to inculcate moral values among primary school pupils in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State.Therefore, it is recommended that teachers should be encouraged to develop positive attitude and perceptions towards storytelling as a strategy for improving the moral value of primary school learners. To mention but few.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background Of The Study

Basic education is a first experience in the world of schooling to a child. Primary school meaningful learning experience will encourage children and provide them with skills, confidence and a positive attitude. All of these skills are important in preparing them for entering formal schooling and lifelong learning (Morni, 2002). Therefore, basic education is a fundamental education that is essential for the development of thinking, character, personality, morality and behavior of a person. According to Dewey (1947), children's learning experience must be led by the teacher by creating a situation or condition that is conducive to their physical and mental development.

Early education is emphasized because, in this stage the child directly or indirectly will adapt everything that happens around them. Each input and teaching will be more easily absorbed in the early stages. According to Bandura (1986), children learn through 'imitation', from their social environment. In fact, the process of imitation of children from parents, adults and teachers deemed to be an important source for the development of children's morality. Aspects of moral and ethical values among pupils is the current demands for the virtuouscitizen (Rashid, 2001). Along with that, there are varieties of techniques, strategies and methods used by parents, guardians and teachers to assist in the development of cognitive, affective and psychomotor of pupils. Specifically, the inculcation of moral values and ethics in the minds of children in primary schools cannot be overemphasized. Like the saying, "while young, the bamboo can be easily bent". To achieve this, the use of storybooks or narrative method to inculcate moral values among children has been considered as one of the most effective strategies.

Storytelling and story book reading has been widely recommended in educational setting. It is common for teachers to read stories to young primary school students in class. Sometimes, teachers who enjoy storytelling choose to integrate storytelling into their classroom routine, believing that their students might benefit from it. According to Sobol (2009), the ancient art of oral storytelling has experienced a resurgence in popularity among child audiences as well as adult audiences. In addition to its entertainment value, someproponents of storytelling and story book reading believe thatstorytelling and story reading may have considerable potential as an educational tool (Alna, 1999).

1.2 Statement Of The Problem

The objective of early childhood education is to establish a foundation for the development of a child’s character, behaviour, knowledge, skills and creativity to spur further development and growth. There are six aspects of development that are focused on in early education of children: “Moral and Religious Values” which is the focus of this study among others.

There are a number of ways that one might morally educate a child. One can demonstrate various virtues and encourage the child to copy his or her own behavior. One can issue a series of imperatives and punish if failure to abide by them. Moreover, one might tell the child stories with moral lessons in order to elicit favorable behavior and to discourage unfavorable behavior. Storytelling and story reading has a ragtag reputation among school teachers. One reason for this reputation is because of a limited research on classroom storytelling and story reading method as a strategy for teaching moral education. Therefore, in this study, storytelling is to be assessed as an educative tool to inculcate moral values and ethics among pupils.

1.3 Objectives Of The Study

The general aim of this study is to assess story telling and the acquisition of moral values among pupils in public primary schools. To achieve this, the study will specifically:

1.        Find out the extent moral education is being implemented in public primary schools in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State.

2.        Determine the whether teachers adopts the storytelling strategy in teaching moral education in public primary schools in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State.

3.        Ascertain whether the use of storytelling helps to inculcate moral values among primary school pupils in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State.

1.4 Research Question

The study will be guided by the following questions:

1.        What is the extent moral education is being taught in public primary schools in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State?

2.        Does teachers adopt the storytelling strategy in teaching moral education in public primary schools in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State?

3.        Does the use of storytelling help to inculcate moral values among primary school pupils in Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State?

1.5 Research Hypothesis

Ho: There is no significant correlation between storytelling and the acquisition of  moral values among primary school pupils.

Ho: There is a significant correlation between storytelling and the acquisition of  moral values among primary school pupils.

1.6 Significance Of The study

This study enlighten teachers on how they can better serve more appropriate aims of moral education by using stories. The study will further challenged teachers to explore the content of stories and help children connect the story with their daily lives. The findings of this study will also be useful to the research community.

1.7 Scope Of The Study

The study generally focuses on story telling and the acquisition of  moral values in pupils in public primary schools. Geographically, this study will be delimited to Yenagoa Local Government Area Of Bayelsa State

1.8 Limitation Of The Study

In the course of carrying out this study, the researcher experienced some constraints, which included time constraints, financial constraints, language barriers, and the attitude of the respondents. However, the researcher were able to manage these just to ensure the success of this study.

1.9 Definition Of Terms

Nature of Stories is the kinds of stories which teachers use to teach pre-primary school learners in early childhood settings. They can be animal tales, repetitive, cumulative, fairy tales and classical tales amongst others.

Storytelling is the act by which Pre-primary school teachers use stories in their teaching of reading skills of pre-primary school learners.

1.10 Organization of the Study

The study is categorized into five chapters. The first chapter presents the background of the study, statement of the problem, objective of the study, research questions and hypothesis, the significance of the study, scope/limitations of the study, and definition of terms. The chapter two covers the  review of literature with emphasis on conceptual framework, theoretical framework, and empirical review. Likewise, the chapter three which is the research methodology, specifically covers the research design, population of the study,  sample size determination,  sample size, abnd selection technique and procedure, research instrument and administration, method of data collection, method of data analysis, validity and reliability of the study, and ethical consideration. The second to last chapter being the chapter four presents the data presentation and analysis, while the last chapter(chapter five) contains the summary, conclusion and recommendation.