Empirical Analysis of Oral Language Development in Early Childhood Under Different Home Language Environments in Anambra State

Oral language development in early childhood is shaped by the linguistic environment of the home, and empirically characterising how different home language environments affect oral language outcomes in Anambra State provides evidence for language policy and ECD practice. This study empirically analysed oral language development in children aged 3 to 5 years across three home language environments in Anambra State: Igbo-dominant, English-dominant, and bilingual. A cross-sectional comparative design was employed with 240 children (80 per language group) from Awka South and Anambra East LGAs assessed using the adapted Comprehensive Assessment of Spoken Language for Nigerian Children covering vocabulary depth, narrative coherence, phonological awareness, and syntactic complexity in both Igbo and English. Regression analysis controlled for parental education, household income, and preschool attendance duration. Results showed that bilingual home environment children demonstrated the highest combined language scores, performing significantly above both Igbo-dominant (p < 0.05) and English-dominant (p < 0.01) groups. Igbo-dominant children showed stronger Igbo oral language development. English-dominant children showed stronger English vocabulary but weaker phonological awareness in both languages. Parental education was the strongest individual predictor of oral language development across all groups. The study provides original empirical evidence for the developmental advantage of bilingual home environments and recommends home language maintenance guidance for parents, bilingual ECD classroom environments, and training ECD teachers in supporting multilingual language development. Keywords: oral language development, home language environment, bilingual children, Anambra State, early childhood