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CHALLENGES FACED BY ADULT STUDENTS IN A SANDWICH PROGRAMME IN NIGERIAN COLLEGES: CASE STUDY OF ADENIRAN OGUNSANYA COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, LAGOS
CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
- Background to the study
Education is a necessity for human survival and the concept of education suggests development of valuable knowledge and skills in a society. O‘ Connor, as reported by Osuji (2009), sees the educational system of any society as an elaborate social mechanism designed to bring about certain skills and attitudes that are adjudged to be useful and desirable in the society. Education prepares individuals for life and makes them useful members of the community. In this regard, Obemeata (2003) agrees with the view of the Catholic Church that education is the means by which people are helped to harmoniously develop their physical, moral and intellectual abilities. According to World Bank (2009:2)
If you do not have education you cannot have trained people in health care. If you do not have education you cannot have a legal system that works. If you do not have education that provides proper ethical values, how can you confront the issues of corruption or of equity in society? If you do not have education, how do you build roads? How do you ensure water supply? How do you build power stations? How do you create industries? How do you support investment? And in the new days of the digital revolution, how do you make an advance to enable societies to take advantage of the digital revolution.) (http://www/worldbank.org/education/introduction.asp)
Education is a necessary tool for articulating and realizing one‘s potential. But the formal system alone, which is selective, cannot provide all the education that is necessary to realize one‘s potential. The terminologies, such as ‗continue-education‘, ‗recurrent education‘ and ‗lifelong education‘ have been used by different people to stress that education should be co-terminous with life.
Education is associated with empowerment. According to Ofuasia (2004) empowerment is making people do things they could never do before. In other words, it is giving people power or increasing their power to enable them do what they could not hitherto have done. Empowerment is rooted in the acquisition of adequate knowledge and capacity, the confidence, the help and the ideas to decide what is best for an individual, and to act accordingly in fulfilling one‘s own potential.
Education ensures access to training and empowerment opportunities. Literacy is a major strategy for reaching the elusive goal of political or economic empowerment. Investing in education is probably the most single cost effective way to promote and improve the standard of living, particularly among the poorest population. Literacy, as a component of education, provides a foundation for helping to alleviate and improve social, economic and political status of people.
Education is also associated to health. Ponmeli (2007) asserts that life expectancy rises by as much as 2 years for every 1 percent increase in literacy. Meara (2008) also claims that an educated adult would live longer than uneducated ones. He adds that an educated adult is less likely to die of many diseases because information about how to live longer, healthier life is available to them. The educated ones will be able to take appropriate healthy steps.
Education can be categorized into formal, non-formal and informal. Adult and non- formal education in their complementary and supplementary roles in education affords the citizens of a country opportunity for attainment of self-fulfillment. Non- formal education can be seen as related to the concepts of recurrent and lifelong learning. Tight (1998) suggests that, whereas lifelong learning has to do with the extension of education and learning throughout life, non-formal education is about
‗acknowledging the importance of education, learning and training which take place outside recognized educational institutions.‘ Furdham (2008) observes that four characteristics associated with non-formal education are relevance to the needs of disadvantaged groups; concern with specific categories of persons; focus on clearly defined purposes; and flexibility in organization and methods.
It has been emphasized that adult education is a powerful means to reduce poverty because it offers reading, writing, and numeracy as well as other fundamental skills that allow learning to continue throughout one‘s life. It allows adults to gain the knowledge and skills necessary for participation in society and the knowledge of economy (CONFINTEAV 2004). Since an educated adult is aware of the power of education, such an adult is likely to be highly involved in children‘s education and be increasingly involved in the community and society. Such adult is also better informed on health-related issues, thereby contributing to disease prevention and better family health which can result in increased productivity that leads to higher income levels and improved quality of life (UNESCO 1997, 2007).
Despite the importance of education, it is unfortunate that one of the major challenges faced by developing nations is a high rate of illiteracy. As at 2009, there was an estimated 867 million illiterate adults, making up 21% of the world‘s total population, with 64% of these illiterates being women. In addition, there were approximately 113 million children aged 6 – 11 years who were not attending school. Sixty percent (60%) of the estimated out-of-school youth were girls. One hundred and fifty million children received less than 4 years of schooling and less than 50% of African girls complete primary schooling (World Bank, 2009).
Despite the fact that education is a right to which every human being, irrespective of colour, sex, creed or location, should naturally be entitled, unfortunately, a large percentage of the citizenry in developing countries, Nigeria inclusive was denied this right. As at 2004, about 19.8 million out of the 66.3 million school-age children (for basic education – first 9 years in school) in Nigeria were unable to access basic education due to widespread poverty, cultural barriers, poorly articulated and defective government policies (FME, 2006). In the quest to tackle illiteracy and thus provide basic education to the citizenry, the country adopts both the formal and non- formal approaches to education.
The formal education approach targets mostly children and adolescents of school age who are actually in school. The Non-Formal Education (NFE) approach targets children, youths and adults who have either dropped out of school before achieving permanent literacy or have never been to school due to a number of factors. Such factors may include poverty and religion as found in the South West and early marriage for girls and alimanjiri as is predominantly the case in the northern part of Nigeria (Adewale, 2006). The case of dropping out of school in some parts of the eastern states is found more with boys who dropped out of school in order to engage in some economic activities (Emeke & Adegoke, 2005). The non-formal approach provides the opportunity for these disadvantaged children, youth and adults to catch up on basic education and mainstream into the formal system, at a given point, if desired..
In Lagos State, the situation of illiteracy is not different from the world‘s picture already stated. The illiteracy level is high in adults. With regards to the younger group, about fifteen (15) percent of those in the school age cohort (15-24) are illiterates. Approximately thirty-eight percent (38%) of the population in Lagos State as at 2006 were illiterates with the majority of them being adults (ANFE, 2006).
Considering the needs of these adult illiterates, and according to a survey conducted by Agency for Non Formal Education Kogi State in 1995, adult learners agreed that literacy helps them to sign marriage registers in the event of their children getting married, helps them sign their cheques and read letters from their children without necessarily exposing family secrets to all. If these benefits of adult education to adult learners are acknowledged, then, it becomes important to see why it should be the desire of governmental, non-governmental organizations, and civil societies that adult education be revitalized for the development of the people concerned and the society at large.
In addition, it would be recalled that widely acclaimed declarations/instruments, such as the World Summit Development Goals, the Millennium Development Goals, the 1990 Jomtien Declaration on Education for All, stress the necessity and importance of investing in literacy and non-formal education. Since Nigeria is a signatory to the mentioned declarations/instruments, it can be safely asserted that the recognition of the need to provide education to all categories of its citizenry, led to the establishment of the Agency for Adult and Non-Formal Education in Nigeria. In Lagos State, the Agency for Adult and Non-Formal Education was established on 11th November, 1987, though it was not until 21st February, 1988, that it was signed and published as Edict 3 of 1988. In addition, the Agency was made a parastatal of the Office of the Governor.
The enabling Edict is very categorical about the statutory functions and objectives of the Agency, which include:
- Organizing and carrying out literacy programme which shall include reading, writing, numeracy, moral and civic education for adult illiterates in the State,
- Developing in the adults, attitudes and commitments towards active participation in the transformation of their immediate locality and the nation at
- Developing in the adults the ability to use skills acquired to enhance their knowledge and understanding of their social and physical environment in order to improve their standard of living,
- Promoting or undertaking any other activity related to functional literacy in health education and agriculture that, in the opinion of the Agency, is calculated to help achieve the purpose of the
- Regulating and supervising of Adult and Non-formal Education Programmes provided by other bodies besides the
The Agency concentrates its activities on the following:
- Literacy – Basic and Post basic:
- Vocational Education: functional literacy
- Women Education
- Continuing and Liberal
The Agency consists of fifteen (15) part-time members whose main responsibilities are policy formulation and management of the Agency. In addition, the Agency is headed by a Director, a Secretary (Deputy Director), three Assistant Directors and 33 Field Officers in the Local Government Areas who are called Local Adult Education Officers.
The Edict made provision for the establishment of the following departments:-
- Adult Literacy,
- Continuing Education,
- Vocational Training (skills improvement),
- Women Education,
- Training, Research and Statistics,
- Publicity and Enlightenment, and
- Administration and
Each Local Government in the State has a Local Adult Education Office manned by a Local Adult Education Officer who co-ordinates the activities in the Learning Centres. The following literacy programmes are organized by the Agency:
- Basic Literacy, which is meant for the beginners of mass literacy programmes to acquire reading and writing skill in mother tongue. Civics and ethics are taught under Family Living. Numeracy is also included in the basic curriculum. It is designed to last for 9
- Post Basic Literacy. This is meant to improve upon the skills acquired in Basic Literacy. The standard is above that of Basic Literacy, while English Language is introduced. Civic education or social studies is also included in the post-basic literacy syllabus. It lasts between 9 – 18 months.
- Advanced Literacy. In this programme, communication is essentially in the English language while Social Studies and Integrated Science are taught. By the time a learner graduates he/she is supposed to be able to pass the Primary School Leaving Certificate Examination. The projection is that Basic literacy is equivalent to Pry. 2; Post-Basic equivalent to Pry. 4 and the Advanced literacy is equivalent to Pry.
- Vocational Literacy. This programme combines skills acquisition training with literacy and numeracy. It promotes skills acquisition for improved income-generating abilities. Among the available vocations are Cookery, Tie and Dye, Fashion Designing, Knitting, Basketry, Block Moulding, Typing, Sewing, and so
- Liberal Education. This is also known as recreational education and can be organized for social clubs, cooperative members, regular ―ayo‖ players, and so
- Artisan Class is meant for occupational groups like the mechanic, vulcanizers, rewire and battery chargers, panel beaters, welders. It
could also be for bricklayers, carpenters, painters, masons, fashion designers and hairdressers. Manuals which deal with their tools and language of occupation can be designed for them.
- Drop-in Centres. These are often located in busy areas like market places, Motor Garages, Abattoirs, and so on, for the learners to attend classes when they are less busy. Such centres have to be equipped with learning materials like simple storybooks, ―Alore Ipinle Lagos‖,
―Alaroye‖, ―Iroyin Yoruba‖, Flashcards, Chart and Drawings. The facilitator is expected to stay longer at the Drop-in-Centre than in the centre for any of the other programme types (ANFE 2006).
In improving the learning outcome.some factors are important. Factors like adequate funding, enriched curricula, adequate infrastructural facilities, instructional materials, teacher‘s qualifications, care of teachers, frequent assessment and feedback (FME 2005).
The Nigerian government has invested much money on the education of her citizens. This is a commendable effort, as education is an indispensable instrument in national development. However, as Obi (1999) observes, Nigeria has achieved very minimal returns to her numerous efforts aimed at reducing the high level of adult illiteracy despite the many years of attempt and despite different approaches and programmes, which have been put in place for this. Okeke (1998) claims that education is a beneficial and indispensable investment in development, as individuals who receive education can contribute to and consume the proceeds of development. This requires that their skills, knowledge and capabilities be developed.
Osuala (1998) avers that the development of human resources should get precedence over natural resources, for these people are both the procurers and beneficiaries of economic development. Unfortunately, illiteracy among people in developing nations, according to Anowor, Ezema and Umezulike (2003) is a major problem in realizing the development of human resources. One way of eliminating illiteracy among people is through adult education.
In Nigeria, the concept of adult education has been sometimes misinterpreted (Ngwu, 2000). This stems from the fact that people are ignorant about what the idea stands for and what adult education has really done for the generality of the people. Adult Education according to the International Congress on Comparative Study (1962:74) is: a process whereby persons who no longer attend school on a regular full-time basis (unless full-time programmes specially designed for Adults) undertake sequential and organized activities with the conscious intention of bringing about changes in information, knowledge, skill, appreciation and attitudes or for the purpose of identifying and solving personal or community problems.
From the above definition, it is clear that adult education is meant to improve the individual and subsequently, the society in which the individual lives. What the world is concerned with these days is education that is aimed at increasing the economic progress of the society and the kind of education that involves the use of science and technology in boosting the economic progress of the community. This is because the economic well-being of the people requires well-trained and skilled personnel, which adult education provides.
No society can be strong if its economy remains at the subsistence level. (FRN 2004). Economic modernization cannot take place unless all the citizens are actively involved in the development process. Adult education offers training that can help individuals improve on their skills and knowledge so that they can contribute effectively to the task of economic development. The Federal Republic of Nigeria (2004) realized that for the objectives and aims of education to become a reality, a more functional approach needs to be taken. This need may explain why the federal and state governments in an attempt to achieve the nation‘s goals and aims in nation building established several adult education agencies and programmes. If adult education is to contribute to development, it must be part of life, integrated with life and inseparable from it. In presenting his proposal for a new perspective for adult education in an address to the 1995 National Conference, the then Federal Minister of Education called for a-ten-year plan for the eradication of illiteracy and ignorance among the adult citizens of the country.
It is now more than ten years when the proposal was made for positive steps to promote and ensure the success of the campaign on mass literacy for development through Adult and Non formal Education. It is necessary to investigate and know whether ANFE is a meaningful plan directed to prove the proposal. Lagos State has established the agency since 1988, but no comprehensive evaluation has been carried out. Ayodele, Araromi, Emeke and Adegbile (2006) assert that evaluation is a continuous process that underlies good programme output and that all facets of any programme need to be evaluated regularly in order to improve such programmes on continuous basis. Emeke and Adegoke (2005) also claim that a good evaluation process could be employed to curb an educational problem, like drop-out. It is, therefore, necessary to evaluate ANFE programmes in Lagos State.
1.2 Statement of the problem
Education prepares individuals for life and makes them useful members of the community. One of the major challenges faced by developing nations is high rate of illiteracy. Therefore, there is need to seek ways of reducing the high rate of illiteracy. Since the formal system of education alone cannot provide all the education everyone needs for self-fulfillment, the Lagos State government realised that the establishment of the Adult and Non Formal type of Education becomes imperative. This led to the establishment of the Programme in 1988. However, the established Adult and Non Formal Education Programme in Lagos State has not been thoroughly evaluated to ascertain the achievement of its initial objectives.
It is on this premise that the present study sought to evaluate the Adult and Non Formal Education Programme in Lagos State, with regard to its contribution to mass literacy, trainees‘ job performance, active participation in the development of participants‘ immediate locality, literacy in health education and improved standard of living.
1.3. Research Questions
-
To what extent have the following objectives of the programme been achieved:
- Literacy (communication, numeracy, health and social studies),
- Trainees/Clienteles‘ job performance,
- Active participation in the development of trainees‘ immediate locality,
- Trainees/Clienteles‘ standard of living,
- Functional literacy in health education?
- What are (a) the composite and (b) the relative contributions of trainees‘ academic needs, trainers‘ experience and qualification, training facilities and training strategy to ANFE trainees‘ achievement in (i) Communication (ii) Numeracy (iii) Social Studies (iv) Health Education?
- What are: (a) the constraints to the application of knowledge and skills acquired by the trainees and (b) the factors that would contribute to the improvement of the ANFE programme?
1.4 Hypothesis
There is no significant difference between the achievement of ANFE advanced literacy trainees and primary six pupils in (a) Communication (b) Numeracy (c) Social Studies and (d) Health Education.
1.5 Significance of the study
This study evaluated Adult and Non Formal Education Programme in Lagos State. It would provide a feedback to the state government and stakeholders. The study would also be a reliable reference document for a similar programme in future. The study will provide information on the effectiveness or otherwise of the programme.
1.6 Scope of the study
The Study evaluated ANFE programme in Lagos state and covered all the trainings of the Adult and Non-Formal Education Programme, which are Basic Literacy, Post- Basic Literacy, Advanced Literacy, Vocational Literacy, Liberal Education, Artisan Class, and Drop-in Centres. All the 33 Local Government Areas in Lagos State were involved in the study. The findings and conclusions drawn from this study are limited to the target population and the trainings they were attending or had attended.
1.7 Conceptual definitions of terms
The following terms are defined as follows:
Literacy: Ability to read and write; and ability to use language in an accomplished and efficient way.
Adult Education: Education and training provided specifically for adults outside the regular school system.
Non-Formal Education: Any organized activity outside the established framework of the formal school system which aims to communicate specific ideas, skills, attitudes and practices in response to a pre-determined end.
Basic Literacy: This is the beginning of Mass Literacy for learning, reading and writing skills in the mother tongue.
Post- basic Literacy: It is an improvement on basic literacy. English Language and Social Studies are introduced at this stage. The standard is above that of basic literacy and it lasts between 9-18 months.
Advanced Literacy: It is the last stage of ANFE training. Trainees are taught English Language, Social Studies and Integrated Science. It is equivalent to primary six leaving certificate if an individual completes it successfully.
Drop in Centres: Centres are located in busy areas like market places, motor garages, abattoirs, etc., for the learners to attend classes when they are less busy.
Vocational Literacy: This is when skills acquisition training, literacy and numeracy are combined.
Liberal Education: This training is also known as Recreational Education and is usually organized for social clubs, co-operative members etc.
Artisan Training: This is meant for occupational groups like mechanics, vulcanizers and bricklayers, etc. Manuals are designed for them.
Achievement in Literacy: This is the performance of Trainees in Communication, Numeracy, Social Studies and Health Education as reflected by the score earned by the trainees in the achievement test.
Achievement in Numeracy: The performance of Trainees in calculation as reflected by the score earned in the achievement test.
Achievement in Communication: This is the performance of Trainees in communication as reflected by the score earned in the achievement test.
1.8 Acronyms and Abbreviations
NFE – Non-formal Education
ANFE – Agency for Adult and Non-formal Education CONFINTEA – International Conference on Adult Education FME – Federal Ministry of Education
UNESCO – United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural
Organization
FRN – Federal Republic of Nigeria
NPE – National Policy on Education
CIPP – Context, Input, Process and Product Evaluation
LGA – Local Government Area
ANFETRAQ – Adult and Non-formal Education Trainee Questionnaire
ANFETEQ – Adult and Non- Formal Education Teachers
Questionnaire
CIS – Classroom Interaction Scale
APAT – ANFE Programme Achievement Test
EFA – Education for All.
CHALLENGES FACED BY ADULT STUDENTS IN A SANDWICH PROGRAMME IN NIGERIAN COLLEGES: CASE STUDY OF ADENIRAN OGUNSANYA COLLEGE OF EDUCATION, LAGOS, GET MORE ADULT EDUCATION PROJECT TOPICS AND MATERIALS
