A critical analysis of the national curriculum for nomadic primary schools in Nigeria

Abstract

Enrolment without attendance is a common problem among nomadic populations in Africa. This study examines the curricula, cultural diversity and learning environments of children enrolled in nomadic primary schools in Nigeria. The study sample comprised 200 (169 female, 31 male) teachers and 50 grade 5 and 6 students (23 female, 27 male) of 25 nomadic primary schools in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Motivated by the need to solve the persistent problem of low attendance and retention among the children of nomadic families, the authors initiated a survey. They developed a questionnaire to investigate the influence of curriculum, cultural diversity and the learning environment on the enrolment of nomadic children and complemented their survey with semi-structured interviews. They analysed their collected data using mean, standard deviation and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), which revealed that a relevant curriculum, a suitable learning environment and diverse learning practices have significant positive implications on enrolment of nomadic children in primary schools. At the end of this article, the authors provide a number of recommendations towards making school attendance more attractive for nomadic children, with the potential effect of providing them with a more satisfying learning experience.