Challenges of Teaching Reading Comprehension to Primary School Pupils in Anambra State

Reading comprehension is foundational to academic achievement across all subjects, yet significant proportions of Nigerian primary school pupils exit the primary cycle with inadequate comprehension skills. This study investigates the challenges associated with teaching reading comprehension to Primary 5 and Primary 6 pupils in selected public schools in Anambra State. Data were collected through classroom observation of twenty reading comprehension lessons, structured interviews with thirty teachers, and diagnostic reading assessments administered to two hundred and forty pupils. The diagnostic assessment was designed to test literal, inferential, and evaluative comprehension at grade-appropriate levels. Teacher interview data reveal that large class sizes, inadequate reading materials, pupils' limited vocabulary, and the interference of Igbo mother tongue are the most frequently cited obstacles to effective comprehension instruction. Classroom observation shows that comprehension instruction is predominantly oral and question-answer based, with minimal use of explicit comprehension strategy instruction such as prediction, summarization, or graphic organizing. Pupil assessment results show that inferential and evaluative comprehension scores are significantly lower than literal comprehension scores across the sample, suggesting that beyond-the-text processing is poorly developed. The study recommends investment in reading materials and the introduction of a structured comprehension strategy programme into the Anambra State primary school curriculum, alongside class size reduction as a medium-term policy goal. Keywords: reading comprehension, primary education, Anambra State, comprehension strategies, teaching challenges.