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.
Résumé
Une analyse critique du curriculum national des écoles primaires nomades au Nigeria – L’inscription à l’école suivie d’absentéisme est monnaie courante au sein des populations nomades en Afrique. Cette étude se penche sur les curriculums, la diversité culturelle et les environnements d’apprentissage d’enfants inscrits dans des écoles primaires nomades au Nigeria. L’échantillon sur lequel elle porte se composait de 200 enseignants (160 femmes et 31 hommes) et de 50 enfants de classes de cinquième et de sixième (23 filles et 27 garçons) de 25 écoles primaires nomades du territoire de la capitale fédérale Abuja. Motivés par la nécessité de résoudre le problème persistant du taux d’absentéisme élevé et du faible niveau de rétention chez les enfants de familles nomades, les auteurs ont lancé une enquête. Ils ont élaboré un questionnaire pour examiner l’influence du curriculum, de la diversité culturelle et de l’environnement d’apprentissage sur l’inscription des enfants nomades à l’école et ont complété leur enquête par des interviews semi-structurées. Ils ont analysé les données recueillies sur la base de la moyenne, de l’écart type et de l’analyse de variance (ANOVA), ce qui a révélé qu’un curriculum pertinent, un environnement d’apprentissage adapté et différentes pratiques d’apprentissage avaient une incidence positive considérable sur l’inscription des enfants nomades dans les écoles primaires. À la fin de cet article, les auteurs donnent un certain nombre de recommandations pour rendre la présence à l’école plus attrayante pour les enfants nomades, ce qui pourrait leur permettre de retirer une plus grande satisfaction de l’apprentissage.
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Notes
The broad goals of the Nomadic Education Programme are: (1) to integrate nomads into national life through relevant, qualitative and basic functional education; and (2) to raise both the productive and income levels of nomads, as well as boost the national economy through improved knowledge, skills and practices of nomads (NCNE n.d.-b). The official NEP outline document is the Blueprint on nomadic education: Fair deal for the nomads (FME 1987).
While the official language of Nigeria is English, over 520 regional languages and dialects are spoken throughout the country (World Population Review 2020).
This means that we set the riskof concluding that a difference exists when there is no actual difference at 5 per cent.
These teachers are referred to as “specialists” because their training included agricultural science education and they were fluent in their pupils’ local language.
In Nigeria, primary school comprises 6 years (grades 1–6). Children enter grade 1 when they are about 5 years old. Education is free and compulsory for Nigerian children aged 5–14.
Purposive sampling is based on the characteristics of a population and the objective of the study. It is one way of keeping the amount of data for an in-depth analysis manageable.
Ethics approval was obtained. First, we sought permission to conduct this study from the 25 primary schools via the head teachers. We obtained the pupils’ written informed consent. Second, we conducted the study during the primary schools’ academic term sessions, which were run concurrently. Thus, we did not conduct the research outside the primary schools academic calendar. Similarly, our study was not carried out during the pupils’ examination revision period or during exam time. Third, we ensured that safety precautions were observed with respect to school safety rules, since the pupils were engaged in practical skills training in activities such as the rearing of animals, and subjects such as basic technology (using tools in the workshop).
A null hypotheses proposes that the difference between certain characteristics of a population is null (zero).
Nigeria’s local government areas (LGAs) are administered by area councils. Our sample schools were located in five different area councils.
Most of the teachers working in Nigerian nomadic schools are not of the same nomadic origin as their nomadic pupils. But they try to understand and speak their pupils’ language to facilitate effective teaching and learning.
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Ohanu, I.B., Salawu, I.A. & Ede, E.O. A critical analysis of the national curriculum for nomadic primary schools in Nigeria. Int Rev Educ 67, 363–383 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-020-09869-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-020-09869-4