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Problems and Prospects of Education in Nigeria

problems and prospects of education in nigeria

It is necessary to discuss the problems and prospects of education in Nigeria to inform the common man.

Education is the bedrock of national development as has been observed in different nations. But unfortunately, Education in Nigeria is bisected by myriads of problems. The worst is that the Nigerian government is showing less concern about improving education.

This is shown by their percentage of budgeted allocation to education and their reluctance to finance tertiary education.

This has led to numerous strike actions both at the elementary level and at the tertiary level. In this article, our focus is on enumerating the key problems and prospects of education in Nigeria.

What Are the Problems and Prospects of the Nigerian Educational System?

problems and prospects of education in nigeria

Problems of education in Nigeria

  1. The decline of infrastructure: There are insufficient classrooms and teaching aids (laboratories, computers), and even the libraries are in pitiful condition, making the public institutions a mess. The buildings are more decrepit than they are learning environments. The educational sector receives funding each year, but nothing changes.
  2. Costly tuition: The affordability of public schools is what sets them apart. Many people fail to pay for these schools and end up dropping out. About 10.5 million people in Nigeria are not enrolled in school, and money is a major factor.
  3. Admission nepotism: Students write Jamb and UTME, but they are treated as outsiders or do not belong to a particular clan or ethnic group, so they do not receive the recognition they deserve. This is also evident in the hiring of teachers, where tribe and language take precedence over knowledge and experience.
  4. Cultism: Cultism is one thing that has dissolved the instructive local area. One reason for the spread of this epidemic among students is the need for students to be feared and to feel powerful. Other reasons include teacher victimization of students, sexual harassment of female students by teachers who force them to have sex for grades, and a lot more.
  5. Corruption: This is one significant sickness eating into the schooling system. Models are assessment negligence by understudies empowered by educators who have been paid to help the interaction.
  6. Greed: As you may be aware, issues always result in additional issues. Due to the fact that the majority of teachers in Nigeria are not paid as they should be, greed is a major issue in the educational system. As a result, even when the government finally decides to pay teachers, school administrators typically keep some of the money for themselves rather than paying the teachers the alleged salary or wage.
  7. Obsolete school educational program: This is yet another significant obstacle facing Nigeria’s educational system. In addition, it is the reason Nigeria lags behind the rest of Africa in terms of technological advancement, information, and growth. Students in Nigeria’s majority of tertiary institutions use out-of-date textbooks. The worst thing of all is that teachers and lecturers who are given the job of teaching tend to be reluctant to keep students up to date on the latest developments in their respective fields of study. This is because teachers are also getting older.
  8. Negative upbringing: The expression “Charity begins at home” is well-known. This demonstrates that a child’s or student’s actions in public have already begun at home. The way their children are raised has a significant impact on their moral standards, and parents are unquestionably one of the most significant influences in their children’s lives.
  9. Insufficient funding: Nigeria’s education system is immediately confronted with inadequate funding. Despite the fact that this issue of inadequate funding has been present for a number of years, those in charge have not taken it into consideration. Typically, the education sector ought to be one of the most invested in. Due to the lack of apparent profit, it’s possible that several administrations haven’t paid enough attention to the education sector’s funding.

Prospects of Education in Nigeria

prospects of education in nigeria
  1. Selection of competent individuals to serve as education commissioner and minister: The appointment of the minister of education and the commissioner of education ought not to be based on politics but rather on their capabilities. In comparison to politicians who view everything as a platform for playing politics, Nigeria’s educational system has fared better under the direction and control of experienced and professional ministers.
  2. Adequate funding: The amount of money given to education is very low, and some of it gets taken away. Consequently, schools are figuring out how to look for approaches to financing which have prompted a high expansion in school expenses (which has become excessively high for the destitute individuals to bear) and commercialization of the schools, others, which have been dismissed are in a horribly vulnerable state with low foundations and frail structures. If this trend continues, the poor and average members of society will soon have no access to education because it would be prohibitively expensive.
  3. Research and development: Universities in Nigeria ought to be at the forefront of national research, particularly in the sciences department. Libraries ought to be refreshed with ongoing books, research tasks ought to be given the most extreme significance by the public authority and subsidizing ought to be made in that regard.
  4. Strikes: The academic union of Universities, polytechnics, and secondary schools are well-known for their frequent strikes; The government grants them certain rights to which they are entitled but fails to pay their dues. In order for progressive movements to manifest in our educational sector, this must change. Teachers and lecturers ought to receive compensation when due.
  5. Anti-cultism: Schools should form anti-cultism groups with the goal of stopping cult practices and arresting offenders until they can be prosecuted.

What are the Problems and Issues in Planning Nigerian Educational Programmes?

Planning the program entails obtaining pertinent data from a variety of sources to assist in creating the specifics of the courses and subjects that will be taught to students in a classroom setting. Planning the program entails establishing and redesigning the program to make sure all elements required to make teaching easier are adequately covered.

problems in planning nigerian educational programs

The following problems and issues are being faced in planning Nigerian educational programs and curriculums.

Non-involvement of teachers in the planning of the curriculum

Teachers serve as the means by which a curriculum plan is put into action. To an enormous degree, these ones decide the outcome of an educational plan since they execute the arrangement by showing the understudies. Therefore, the teacher should be involved in the actual curriculum planning process using their teacher planner 2021. Feedback from teachers who have used a particular curriculum could be one way that teachers get involved.

Inadequate research on the learner

It is essential, when planning a curriculum, to prioritize the needs and interests of the students in order to create a curriculum that is effective and meets the objective. A well-designed curriculum should meet the needs of students in a variety of categories, such as gifted students, slow learners, students with mental disabilities, and so on. As a result, Nigerian students’ intellectual abilities and disabilities must be taken into account when designing a curriculum. In Nigeria, children’s weaknesses and disabilities are frequently ignored because they are not considered significant.

The absence of learning resources and materials will be evident.

A child’s learning process is aided by the use of learning materials and resources. In point of fact, it has been observed that without the use of learning aids, no meaningful learning can occur. The Minister of Education in Nigeria has to deal with the issue of not being able to provide all Nigerian educational establishments with the necessary learning resources. Too many students, especially those in rural areas, cannot afford the essential learning materials they require. This is a significant issue that makes it difficult to plan and implement a curriculum.

The poor condition of the school environment

The majority of Nigerian schools are in poor condition when it comes to the infrastructure and conditions of the school environment. Some schools lack essential amenities and are located in unpleasant and noisy areas. A child’s learning process and the success of the curriculum are influenced by all of these factors.

Non-involvement of curriculum experts

When planning a curriculum, it is necessary to employ the services of curriculum experts. The technical aspects of curriculum planning should be handled by them. Based on their expertise and experience, curriculum experts assist in organizing the curriculum so that it is effective and relevant to students.

Politicization of education

Educational program arranging doesn’t just include teachers and others along that vocation way. Government officials must cooperate in order to create a curriculum. Budgets are approved and actions to implement the curriculum are facilitated by government officials. Effective educational planning is hindered in Nigeria by the bureaucratic procedures involved in policy and lawmaking, as well as by the egotism and ignorance of political leaders. Curriculum content is frequently dictated by political leaders who do not understand how the educational system operates. When it is added to the curriculum, some people deny any changes.

Lack of Funding

The educational sector’s financial resources and funding are crucial to the successful implementation of a curriculum plan. For instance, funds are required to purchase learning resources, and instructional materials, pay staff salaries, maintain school infrastructures, and so on.

Culture and ideology

The prevalent ideologies in a given environment may have an impact on how strategies are implemented in schools in that region. There are many different cultures and religions in Nigeria, which may affect what is considered acceptable there.

Inappropriate supervision

In order to guarantee the successful implementation of a curriculum, appropriate supervision is frequently neglected. The curriculum’s effective implementation is hindered by this.

Lack of technological innovation

The world is becoming more technologically advanced, and the educational sector is the most obvious example of this. However, the educational sector in Nigeria has not kept up. Curriculum planning in Nigeria has been negatively impacted by the sector’s inability to implement cutting-edge technology in the classroom. As a result, students in Nigeria’s majority of schools do not receive an education that is up to international standards.

Changes in educational policies

Changes in educational policies on a regular basis are another major obstacle to effective curriculum planning in Nigeria. Different educational policies have been implemented in Nigeria, affecting the country’s planned curriculum.

What Factors Facilitates School Community Relations?

Young people who get a good education have a positive self-concept and good emotional and mental health.

With their parents, other members of their family, and the community as a whole, these young people will be able to develop positive, healthy relationships. In addition, they will be good employers and employees in the future.

These values cannot be instilled by the school alone. In a similar vein, well-rounded individuals cannot be produced solely by parents and social groups.

To achieve the best possible outcomes for youth, the school, and the community must collaborate.

  1. Communication is essential: For a variety of reasons, including complying with federal laws and keeping parents and families informed, two-way communication is essential in school districts. Schools experience various advantages from having an essential correspondence plan set up, and further developing local area relations inside the region is one of the most critical.
  2. Improve communication relations within the community: Community relations within school districts can be improved by adopting a consistent voice and messaging. To ensure that all communications comply with district policy and are carried out in accordance with it, a communication plan with standardized guidelines and templates helps to unify messaging across departments. In the event of a crisis at the school, the district’s procedure for notifying parents and family members of an emergency should be outlined in a school communication plan.
  3. Leadership is essential: A strong relationship between the school and the community can be established if school leaders demonstrate to all stakeholders that they are equal partners in the development of the children. Leadership entails persuading people on both sides of our school’s walls to reconsider their preconceptions regarding community and family involvement. With initiative comes the need to briefly verbalize the region’s way of thinking via a conventional strategy that can likewise lay out execution assumptions.
  4. School-community partnership: Families and communities should be seen by the school as equal educational experts. What’s more, schools ought to take advantage of the qualities and qualities that external gatherings offer of real value. By partnering with the community, also helps students, educators in the school districts, and families develop a sense of trust and belonging.
  5. Model of engagement matters: We will need to develop or adopt a model of engagement and think about how it could be used in each of our individual school settings in order to put these so-far hazy ideas into practice.
  6. Personalization is needed: Personalization becomes possible once a model with clearly defined options has been established. As a parent, my knowledge, availability, self-assurance, skill level, and interest all play a role in whether or not I work with the teacher, school, or district of my child. As we get to know one another, my youngster’s educator or counsel and I can cooperate to settle on conclusions about what my commitment will be. My child’s administrator also talks to members of civic organizations like Rotary and the Chamber of Commerce about their individual support plans at the same time.

Marshal out a good health education for secondary schools?

The majority of schools include a comprehensive health education program as an essential component of the curriculum. When parents are involved, health education programs are most effective. Parents can supplement and support what kids are realizing in school during discussions and exercises at home.

Through the provision of efficient health education, schools can significantly contribute to the reduction of health risks faced by adolescents.

A course of study or program typically organizes the specific content and skills that are covered in health education, such as sexual health and other related topics like violence prevention, mental and emotional health, food and nutrition, etc.

The curriculum for health education should include:

  1. A set of intended learning outcomes or goals that are directly related to students’ development of health-related knowledge, attitudes, and skills.
  2. A predetermined sequence of health-related lessons or experiences that are developmentally appropriate.
  3. Continuity between lessons or experiences in learning clearly emphasizes the adoption and upkeep of particular health-enhancing behaviors.
  4. Materials or content that go along with the order of the learning events and help teachers and students achieve the learning goals.
  5. Strategies for assessing whether students have learned what is expected of them.

Health education cannot be complete without addressing sexual health. Including sexual health education, health education should:

  1. Provide health-promoting decisions and actions with accurate, appropriate, and direct health information.
  2. Address the needs of youth who are not having sex as well as youth who are currently sexually active
  3. Consistently include topics and gender identities that are culturally relevant and affirming for LGBTQ+ and other youth
  4. Align with adolescent health data, that are relevant to school policies and practices, and
  5. Use direct, active involvement from students, parents, and community partners

What Is The Subject Matter Of Educational Tests, Measurements, And Evaluations?

Education measurements

The use of a standard scale or measuring tool to ascertain the extent to which educationally valuable knowledge, skills, and abilities have been acquired is referred to as educational measurement.

This includes the theory, methods, and instruments for measuring educationally relevant human, institutional, and social characteristics, according to the National Council on Measurement in Education’s website. We measure to get information, which may or may not be useful depending on how well the instruments are used and how accurately they are calibrated.

Testing is included in the general term “assessment.” Testing is typically used to measure progress toward educational objectives. An assessment is both an instrument and a method for gathering data about a predetermined objective or goal.

Any instrument used to test, scale, and evaluate the results of the educational process is referred to as an “educational measurement” tool.

The term “educational measurement” refers to the use of educational exams and the analysis of data, including scores from such examinations, to determine students’ abilities and proficiencies. The methods are similar to those used in psychometrics. When a trait, such as achievement, interest, attitude, aptitude, intelligence, or performance is measured educationally, numbers are assigned to that trait.

Education test

An educational test or exam is used to assess a person’s understanding of a subject in order to ascertain what they already know or have learned. Testing’s objective is to establish the degree of learned skill or knowledge.

A process of recording knowledge, skills, attitudes, and beliefs, usually in quantifiable terms, is called an evaluation. The goal of educational assessment is to help teachers and students learn more effectively by enhancing the current teaching methodology.

Educational testing can become more effective and of higher quality as a result of technological advancements. However, whether the improved technology will result in more efficient use of educational test results remains to be seen.

Education evaluation

Evaluation of educational programs focuses on the success of program interventions. These in the field of education often deal with learning, like reading, behavioral, emotional, and social development, like anti-bullying initiatives, or with more general issues, such as changes to the entire school system, like inclusive education.

The practice of describing and assessing a particular component or aspect of the educational process is known as educational evaluation.

In educational evaluation, there are two common goals that may clash with one another. In order to show effectiveness to funders and other stakeholders and to give a measure of success for marketing purposes, educational institutions typically need evaluation data. If educators want to continuously review and improve the learning they are trying to assist, educational evaluation is also a professional activity that they need to engage in.

Compared to educational measurement, educational evaluation is more comprehensive and impartial. It involves thoroughly evaluating the individual using a range of information-giving tools.

In addition to measurement and potential testing, the evaluation also involves the idea of value judgment. Measurement and testing are considered to have occurred if a teacher gives a test to a class and calculates the proportion of right answers. It is necessary to interpret the scores, which may entail turning them into numerical values like As, Bs, Cs, and so on, or assigning them a quality rating of excellent, good, fair, or poor. Evaluating is the procedure in question.

How Do We Apply Educational Laws to School Management?

Education law has an impact on almost every area of the educational system, including teacher rights, curricular standards, special education, student conduct, school safety, and discrimination. It is in the best interests of students, teachers, and administrators for educational leaders to be knowledgeable about some of the fundamental statutes, standards, and requirements, even if the majority of schools hire legal specialists.

To apply educational laws in school management, the management cadre of the institution should be familiar with the relevant laws. For example,

  • Education laws contribute to the creation of a more skilled workforce, which can be beneficial to society as a whole as well as the economy. Because of these factors, education laws have been enacted by governing bodies at the federal, state, and local levels to regulate and implement a sound system that guarantees adequate funding and qualified teachers.
  • A system of compulsory education will be established by basic educational law. Children must attend school at a certain age or for a certain amount of time under this system.
  • Notwithstanding the time boundaries laid out through instructive regulation, the field can likewise direct the guidelines and practices of the basic educating experts. A system like this will have rules or requirements that explain how to hire teachers, how much they should be paid, and how to do things properly.
  • Additionally, educational law will establish procedures and policies for evaluating teaching methods. In order to make the educational system as effective as possible, this area of education law needs to exist.

Without the necessary knowledge of the law, it’ll be difficult to implement the requisite laws in school administration. For more information visit the section above.

What Do You Understand By Educational Finance And Evaluation?

The process of systematically evaluating the implementation of a financial education intervention and comparing learner accomplishments to program goals and objectives to determine the educational program’s success or failure is known as financial education program evaluation.

Based on these definitions, there are two primary goals of evaluation: investigating the operations or procedure of a financial education intervention as well as the outcomes or accomplishments achieved by participants.

While not mutually exclusive, these two primary goals correspond to the two main types of evaluation:

  1. formative assessment and
  2. summative assessment

formative assessment

Educators can use formative evaluation to determine whether the program is meeting the needs of its beneficiaries, whether the activities that are carried out are of high quality, and whether they need to be improved. The educator can determine whether the desired program activities and procedures are being carried out with accuracy and quality by participating in formative evaluation.

The educator is able to both identify and address the program’s barriers and weaknesses as well as its strengths and capitalize on them. Educators will ultimately be able to make program enhancements thanks to the data provided by a good formative evaluation, which supports these areas.

A financial education program’s needs and aspects of quality implementation might be examined in a formative evaluation, such as: Does the curriculum or financial education program meet the needs of the participants?

Summative assessment

Summative assessment assists instructors with reporting member results related to or ascribed to monetary training programs. The results of a summative evaluation can be used to determine whether or not a program is successful in fostering knowledge of financial education concepts and behavior change, as well as the perceived and actual benefits of services.

By illustrating the relative cost-benefit ratio, these findings can also provide data to support the program’s continuation or to request additional funding. Program outcomes that are documented enable funding agencies to evaluate the value of programs and allocate more funds to educational programs that are more effective.

A summative evaluation of a financial education program might look at the outcomes and participant experiences of the program, such as: After utilizing the services, do participants show an increase in the desired outcomes?

As A Principal How Do You Apply Maslow’s Hierarchy Of Needs To The Teachers Under You?

The hierarchy of needs was first proposed by psychologist Abraham Maslow in his 1943 paper, “A Theory of Human Motivation.” The theory is based on the idea that in order for humans to reach their full potential, certain needs must be met.

The theory categorizes human requirements into five groups: physiology, security, love and belonging, self-esteem, and actualization

Physiological requirements make up the first level of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Food, water, and a place to call home are among the most basic necessities that every human being needs to live. It would include ensuring that teachers have access to nutritious food by paying them a worthy salary and on time. In places where necessary, accommodation should be provided for those who have need of shelter.

Safety requirements make up the second level of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Humans require these things in order to feel safe and secure. In a school setting, this would include creating a welcoming and secure environment for all teachers.

Love and belonging make up the third level of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Humans need to be loved and accepted. It would include making certain that every teacher in the school has a sense of belonging and is valued.

Esteem is at the fourth level of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Humans have this need to feel good about themselves. It would include giving all teachers chances to succeed and be praised for their achievements in the school. They should not be disrespected, especially, in the presence of the students and their subordinates.

Self-actualization is the fifth and final level of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Humans have a need to achieve their full potential. It would include giving every teacher the chance to discover their interests and improve their skills in the school. Allowing and encouraging teachers to apply for continuing education and certifications will help them attain their ultimate satisfaction.

Conclusion

As important as education is to nation-building, it comes with numerous problems. Each nation has peculiar problems and seeks to combat them. Nigeria is not an exemption.

In this article, we discussed the problems and prospects of education in Nigeria in addition to others. If you are still here, kindly tell us some of the problems encountered within your school community. Use the comment box below.

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