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Review <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> on basic education in NigeriaIn addition, web searches were made <strong>of</strong> international development agencies, such as DFID, USAID, <strong>the</strong>World Bank, UNESCO, UNICEF, Save <strong>the</strong> Children, ActionAid, Plan International, Oxfam etc., for projectreports. These also <strong>of</strong>ten proved to be equally difficult to access.A snowballing technique was also used to search for articles found in <strong>the</strong> reference lists <strong>of</strong> reports andarticles found through regular searches.1.3.1 LimitationsThere are several limitations to this <strong>review</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong>. First, it was not possible to access some <strong>of</strong><strong>the</strong> relevant research or evaluation reports (see also Okojie 2012: 25), so at times we have referred too<strong>the</strong>r reports citing <strong>the</strong>ir findings, while at o<strong>the</strong>r times we have not been able to refer to <strong>the</strong>m at all.The grey <strong>literature</strong>, that is to say government documents such as <strong>the</strong> Nigeria Digest <strong>of</strong> EducationStatistics 2006–2010 (FME 2011b), was equally difficult to access and frequently electronic copies wereunavailable. As <strong>the</strong> Presidential Task Team on Education (PTTE) candidly explained:Placing information in <strong>the</strong> public domain is not normal practice in departments and agencies <strong>of</strong> ministries<strong>of</strong> education in <strong>the</strong> country. Someone seeking information is told ‘but it’s <strong>the</strong>re’ ... ‘we’ve got it’, etc. butone has to strive extra hard to dig out something <strong>of</strong> any use. Education statistics are a problem, publicdisplay <strong>of</strong> activity reports is not common practice, and functional ministry websites are at an embryonicstage. … The habit <strong>of</strong> ‘my schedule’ and <strong>of</strong>ficer-in-charge have not helped <strong>the</strong> cause <strong>of</strong> public information.There is no way one can access information on any aspect <strong>of</strong> ministry work if <strong>the</strong> <strong>of</strong>ficer-in-charge is ‘noton seat’ (FME 2011a: 31).Moreover, a devolved federal system <strong>of</strong> 36 states means a lot <strong>of</strong> variation at state and even LGEA levelthat is impossible to capture in such a <strong>review</strong>. As has been pointed out:What we know is far less than what we don’t know in a Nigerian fiscal federalism structure, i.e. <strong>the</strong>re isvariation on most issues especially between and within states, LGAs and schools. The fact that we do notknow whe<strong>the</strong>r a report is available does not mean it does not exist (Adekola, personal communication).In addition, as government stakeholders have readily acknowledged (e.g. FME 2005; FME 2011a), <strong>the</strong>reis still a problem <strong>of</strong> conflicting and unreliable data on major educational and o<strong>the</strong>r social service issuesin Nigeria, despite recent improvements (Santcross et al. 2010; UNDP Nigeria 2010); inevitably too, <strong>the</strong>various studies we refer to will have relied upon different data sets.In terms <strong>of</strong> research methodologies, <strong>the</strong>re is a preponderance <strong>of</strong> quantitative studies and surveys; evenwhere qualitative research has been done, <strong>the</strong> results have <strong>of</strong>ten been quantified in <strong>the</strong>ir presentation,or details glossed over. We found very little in-depth ethnographic, socially situated research available.One <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> results <strong>of</strong> this over-reliance on large-scale surveys and quantitative research is that <strong>the</strong>cultural specificities and social complexities <strong>of</strong> such a vast and diverse country as Nigeria have failed t<strong>of</strong>ilter through in much <strong>of</strong> this <strong>review</strong>, <strong>the</strong> exception perhaps being in <strong>the</strong> area <strong>of</strong> pastoral nomads andalmajirai. This apparent homogeneity is also due in part to <strong>the</strong> fact that formal schooling – <strong>the</strong> focus <strong>of</strong>this report – is itself a homogenising force that attempts to flatten out socio-cultural differences.The final point to be made about <strong>the</strong> <strong>review</strong> relates to coverage. As mentioned above, most <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>empirical <strong>literature</strong> relates to development programmes in nor<strong>the</strong>rn, predominantly rural Nigeria. Wefound only limited research focusing on o<strong>the</strong>r areas <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> country and on major urban environments,with <strong>the</strong> exception, perhaps, <strong>of</strong> Lagos. That said, <strong>the</strong>re is some coverage in <strong>the</strong> <strong>review</strong> <strong>of</strong> some generallyquestionnaire-based studies conducted by university researchers in <strong>the</strong> south.EDOREN – Education Data, Research and Evaluation in Nigeria 7
Review <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> on basic education in Nigeria1.4 Structure <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>review</strong>Chapter 2, ‘Access to basic education’, considers educational access in <strong>the</strong> narrow sense <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> word:identifying who is in and out <strong>of</strong> school and who drops out <strong>of</strong> school and why, in broad terms.Chapter 3, ‘Educational quality – The school context’, begins to look at school quality, by considering <strong>the</strong>school in terms <strong>of</strong> infrastructure and teaching resources. This <strong>the</strong>n leads to an examination <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>teaching and learning process itself in Chapter 4, ‘Educational quality – Teaching and learning’. Thischapter <strong>review</strong>s what we know about curriculum issues, including school subjects, <strong>the</strong> MOI, teachingmethods, assessment, and teacher–pupil and pupil–pupil relations.Chapter 5, ‘Outcomes <strong>of</strong> basic education’, focuses on <strong>the</strong> impact <strong>of</strong> basic education both in terms <strong>of</strong>fur<strong>the</strong>r learning and beyond: on <strong>the</strong> labour market, as regards <strong>the</strong> macro-economy, on fertility, and on<strong>the</strong> intergenerational effects <strong>of</strong> schooling.Chapter 6, ‘Government and schooling’, considers <strong>the</strong> broader picture and <strong>the</strong> political economy andgovernance structures <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> education system, highlighting <strong>the</strong> key issues affecting educationalgovernance and focusing on <strong>the</strong> financing <strong>of</strong> education.Chapter 7, ‘Providers <strong>of</strong> non-state, non-formal and special education’, looks at private education, whichincludes for-pr<strong>of</strong>it secular schools and various faith-based schools, including Islamic schooling andgovernment initiatives to integrate Qu’ranic schooling. Pre-primary schooling is also considered herebecause although it has become part <strong>of</strong> basic education its provision still resides primarily within <strong>the</strong>private sector. NFE is considered next and <strong>the</strong>n special education for nomadic populations and peoplewith disabilities.Chapter 8 is entitled ‘Gender and basic education’, and focuses on <strong>the</strong> barriers to girls’ schooling andrecent initiatives to improve female participation in school. However, it also pays some attention toboys and schooling, especially <strong>the</strong> particular situation <strong>of</strong> almajirai boys. In this chapter, we also suggestways in which future gender-focused research might productively be reconceptualised.In Chapter 9, <strong>the</strong> ‘out-<strong>of</strong>-school’ factors that <strong>of</strong>ten ‘pull’ children out <strong>of</strong> school are put under <strong>the</strong>spotlight, including <strong>the</strong> demand for schooling, poverty, children’s need to earn money and/or help withdomestic tasks, health issues and o<strong>the</strong>r cultural factors. Particular attention is given to nomadiccommunities’ learning needs and experiences.Teachers are <strong>the</strong> focus <strong>of</strong> chapters 10 and 11. In Chapter 10, ‘Teachers and teacher education’, we firstconsider matters concerning teacher qualifications, appointment and deployment, <strong>the</strong>n pay, conditionsand teacher motivation. Attention <strong>the</strong>n turns to teacher education, both pre-service and in-service, andrecent initiatives taken in relation to <strong>the</strong> latter. Chapter 11 continues with discussion <strong>of</strong> head teachersand <strong>the</strong>ir role in teacher management, as well as issues related to teacher support, school inspectionand teacher discipline.After considering teachers and <strong>the</strong>ir perspectives, we <strong>the</strong>n look at what little is known about pupils’ livesin school in Chapter 12. This includes discussion <strong>of</strong> school duties, timetables, discipline, and peerrelations.Chapter 13 <strong>the</strong>n moves on to school–community relations, particularly through SBMCs and PTAs.Throughout <strong>the</strong> chapters we have attempted to highlight equity issues in terms <strong>of</strong> identifying <strong>the</strong> groups<strong>of</strong> children least likely to be in school or performing well, and/or whose identity and lifestyle needs put<strong>the</strong>m at a disadvantage in relation to full participation in formal schooling.EDOREN – Education Data, Research and Evaluation in Nigeria 8
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