Perceptions of Unequal Access to Primary and Secondary Education: Findings from Nigeria

Abstract

Abstract: Nigerian parents and teachers were interviewed with the purpose of understanding how ordinary citizens view the unequal participation in education in Nigeria. Several areas of concern were identified in relation to participation in schooling such as its financial cost to families, the perceived limited value of education in adulthood, and the low quality of instruction. The interviewees acknowledged the continuing unequal participation of some groups and gave some reasons for their exclusion, though they did not seek to justify it. Specific policy suggestions are made for increasing participation in schooling by all children and for improving the quality of schooling. Resume: Nous avons interroge des parents et des enseignants nigeriens afin de comprendre comment les citoyens ordinaires considerent la participation inegale a la scolarite au Nigeria. Plusieurs domaines d'inquietude relatifs a la participation a la scolarite ont ete identifies, tels que le cout financier pour les familles, la valeur limitee de l'education percue dans la vie adulte, ainsi que la faible qualite de l'instruction. Les personnes interrogees ont reconnu la participation inegale constante de certains groupes, et ont donne des raisons pour leur exclusion, bien qu'elles n'aient pas cherche a la justifier. Des suggestions de politique specifique sont faites, destinees a accroitre la participation de tous les enfants a la scolarite et a ameliorer la qualite de l'education. Introduction Approximately 125 million primary school students were enrolled in subSaharan Africa in the school year 2000-2001, a 90 percent increase from 1985 (UNESCO 1994). While most children in sub-Saharan Africa have some primary schooling, far fewer African children participate in secondary education, and about 12 percent will never receive any formal schooling (Lassibille & Gomez 1990:513). Since not all children will be enrolled in school in the early years of the twenty-first century, it is important to investigate which children will not be served, whether the groups they represent can be predicted, and what factors will have an effect on children's unequal enrollment. Since 1960, when there was a continental conference in Addis Ababa, African countries have been committed to universal primary education. At that conference, 1980 was set as the target year for the achievement of universal primary education. Although this goal was not met, enrollment was far greater than the projections had suggested it would be. Whereas many African children begin school, a large proportion do not complete their schooling. Primary school completion rates declined in the lowest-income countries (those with an annual per capita income of U.S.$450 or less), such as Chad and Mozambique, during the 1980s (Sunal, Sunal, & Osa 1994; Sunal & Haas 1998:37-70). The Problem Meaningful improvements in education, including equal access to education, require pressure on government from below. Such improvements also require support from policy-makers and educational planners, and continuous negotiation among those at different levels of the educational system (Chapman, Mahlck, & Smulders 1997). [Lambda] concern for all educators, then, is the following question: How do advocates who seek to reform education into a system in which all participate fully get a wide circle of individuals to be involved with, and support, education? The exploration of the perceptions of those who make up the broad base of the educational system (classroom teachers, parents, and children) can help identify beginning points for reform efforts. The Madagascar Quality Study identified three factors affecting enrollment and continued participation in schooling: community involvement, strong local school leadership, and availability of teachers' materials such as guides and textbooks (Henevald & Craig 1995). In addition, community involvement was found to have a role in the acceptance and institutionalization of different instructional approaches in Madagascar. …