DEVELOPING LITERACY SKILLS TO ENHANCE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF LEARNERS IN UYO EDUCATION ZONE

The study aimed at investigating how literacy skills development in reading relates with the academic performance of secondary school learners at Essien Udim Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. To achieve this, 446 Senior Secondary Three (SS3) learners were purposively selected from the 15 public schools in the local government out of a population of 1,317. The study raised 3 hypotheses and adopted a structured questionnaire for data collection. The resulting data were analyzed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Statistics. The findings showed that there was a significant relationship between the availability of reading materials, conducive learning environment and teachers’ utilization of literacy materials in the development of literacy skills in reading to enhance academic performance of the learners in the study. It is recommended that teachers should attend workshops and seminars to help upgrade their teaching skills in reading