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Review <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> on basic education in NigeriaCONCLUSIONThe main aim <strong>of</strong> this <strong>review</strong> has been to pull toge<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong> insights from available research anddevelopment <strong>literature</strong> on basic education and point to some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> gaps in our knowledge and ways inwhich we might increase our knowledge. The emphasis has been on <strong>the</strong> factors that affect educationalaccess, quality, outcomes and equity in basic education, particularly in public primary schools and, to alesser extent, public JSSs.Despite ga<strong>the</strong>ring and examining a copious amount <strong>of</strong> documents for this <strong>review</strong>, it is obvious that wehave only scratched <strong>the</strong> surface <strong>of</strong> what goes on in <strong>the</strong> widely divergent state, local government andcommunity/school contexts across Nigeria. Just considering <strong>the</strong> state level, <strong>the</strong>re are several states thathave not been mentioned in any <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> <strong>review</strong>ed (excluding <strong>the</strong>ir involvement in nationalsurveys): for example, Imo, Abia and Kebbi have not been referred to. That is not to say that nothing ishappening in <strong>the</strong>se places; ra<strong>the</strong>r, ei<strong>the</strong>r nobody has written about basic education in those states or<strong>the</strong>y have but we were unable to access it within <strong>the</strong> time and resource constraints <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> project.Information exchange among states may take place formally and informally through scheduled meetings<strong>of</strong> heads <strong>of</strong> SUBEBs or heads <strong>of</strong> colleges <strong>of</strong> education, for example. However, <strong>the</strong> process <strong>of</strong> putting thisreport toge<strong>the</strong>r has highlighted <strong>the</strong> need for a more formal sharing <strong>of</strong> written knowledge, for reasons <strong>of</strong>accountability and transparency but also so that all educational stakeholders can learn from, and in turncontribute to, this growing body <strong>of</strong> knowledge.A summary <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> substantive research findings according to topic (e.g. on teacher education,educational governance, etc.) is to be found in <strong>the</strong> executive summary. This conclusion, however, aimsto:Highlight some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> general cross-cutting issues related to research that have arisen from <strong>the</strong><strong>review</strong>;Summarise <strong>the</strong> research gaps, both substantive and methodological, as <strong>the</strong>y relate to basiceducation; andOffer suggestions for future directions for research.It is not concerned with <strong>of</strong>fering policy recommendations per se, although many <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> issues raisedhave implications for both policy and practice.Key methodological issues from <strong>the</strong> <strong>review</strong>School data – issues arisingAs has been stated numerous times in this <strong>review</strong>, reliable statistical data are crucial for evaluatinginterventions, carrying out evidence-based planning, and for doing research. They are also pivotal inhelping to ensure accountability and transparency, provided <strong>the</strong> data are made publically available.However, EMIS data, as has been said many times, were <strong>of</strong>ten found to be lacking or inaccurate and/orunavailable, particularly for private schools. Evidence suggests that in some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> ESSPIN-supportedstates, in particular, <strong>the</strong> quality <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> EMIS data is improving, with data-validation processes in placeand more accessible presentation <strong>of</strong> data. However, school data are only as good as <strong>the</strong> informationprovided by any particular school. The research has shown that <strong>the</strong> reliability <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> returns maysometimes be compromised by <strong>the</strong> literacy and numeracy constraints <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> head or assistant headteacher, by <strong>the</strong> absence <strong>of</strong> an admissions register in <strong>the</strong> first place, and/or by <strong>the</strong> incentive to inflatefigures to gain some material advantage.EDOREN – Education Data, Research and Evaluation in Nigeria 153
Review <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> on basic education in NigeriaWhile most studies acknowledge <strong>the</strong> unreliability <strong>of</strong> EMIS and o<strong>the</strong>r statistical data, <strong>the</strong>y simultaneouslyuse <strong>the</strong> data as evidence <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> positive impact <strong>of</strong> particular programmes, which is problematic.Some SBMCs are starting community-based education data ga<strong>the</strong>ring but here too <strong>the</strong>re may beincentives for inflating enrolment or attendance figures, in <strong>the</strong> hope <strong>of</strong> accessing fur<strong>the</strong>r funding fromei<strong>the</strong>r government or IDPs. It would be useful to know what different strategies are being used to tryand improve <strong>the</strong> reliability <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>se statistics.Issues around definitionsIn regard to enrolment figures, <strong>the</strong>re is <strong>the</strong> thorny issue <strong>of</strong> who counts as being enrolled in, or attending,school. ESSPIN-supported states are providing data on IQTE schools but some schools that are nominallyIQTE have been found to lack <strong>the</strong> curriculum documents and teachers to teach <strong>the</strong> secular subjects, soshould <strong>the</strong>y count? Conversely, should children attending unregistered schools be considered to be out<strong>of</strong> school?Age-specific data are absent and so it is hard to calculate NERs and know how many over-age pupils arein school and where <strong>the</strong>y are. The issue <strong>of</strong> over-age pupils has implications both for <strong>the</strong>ir own chances<strong>of</strong> staying in school and also for classroom dynamics with o<strong>the</strong>r children.Absenteeism and dropout are two closely related issues, which both require more robust data. Whatexactly counts as dropping out? How many days/weeks does a child have to miss to be considered a‘dropout’? And how is attendance data (in <strong>the</strong> sense <strong>of</strong> going to school on a regular basis) going to becaptured if, as <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> tells us, teachers may not be <strong>the</strong>re to take <strong>the</strong> register or <strong>the</strong> register maynot be <strong>the</strong>re to start with? Researchers will need to devise creative ways <strong>of</strong> investigating attendancepatterns.Geographical coverageGeographical coverage in <strong>review</strong> documents was very uneven across <strong>the</strong> country. Apart from nationalsurveys, such as <strong>the</strong> 2010 NEDS and 2008 NDHS, some secondary empirical studies based on <strong>the</strong>ir data,and <strong>the</strong> 2004 ESA studies, most available studies focused on states in nor<strong>the</strong>rn Nigeria, and sometimesLagos in <strong>the</strong> south. This was because <strong>the</strong>y were generally tied to development programmes, which areconcentrated in <strong>the</strong> north. The exceptions included studies carried out by Nigerian academics in <strong>the</strong>various established university cities, such as Ibadan in <strong>the</strong> South West; <strong>the</strong>se studies were <strong>of</strong>tenconducted within a single LGEA, or in one or more nearby states, unless <strong>the</strong>y used pre-existing nationaldatasets.School coverageMost <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> research on basic education was focused on public primary schools. Some studies includedboth primary schools and JSSs in <strong>the</strong>ir sample and/or public and private, religious and/or secularinstitutions, although did not always differentiate between school types in <strong>the</strong> reporting <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> findings,especially in qualitative studies.In-depth studies are needed on different types <strong>of</strong> schools – boarding, single-sex, co-educational, private,church and IQTE – in order to identify features that aid or hinder access, retention and learning but atboth primary and JSS level. More also needs to be known about ECCE.EDOREN – Education Data, Research and Evaluation in Nigeria 154
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