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Review <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> on basic education in Nigeria4.2.1 Curriculum documentationOne <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> 2004 ESA surveys looked at <strong>the</strong> availability <strong>of</strong> curriculum documentation in over 800secondary schools (<strong>the</strong> majority were junior and senior schools combined) across <strong>the</strong> country: only in aquarter <strong>of</strong> schools were curriculum guides, teacher guides and textbooks considered to be ‘available andadequate’. In regard to syllabuses and schemes <strong>of</strong> work, schools fared slightly better, with just underhalf reporting ‘available and adequate’ syllabuses and well over half reporting <strong>the</strong> same for schemes <strong>of</strong>work (FME 2005). Stakeholders across several states in UBEC’s impact assessment and in some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>national assessments have similarly lamented a shortage <strong>of</strong> curriculum guides (UBEC 2007, 2009 and2012a). For a successful rollout <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> new syllabus, this will need to be addressed to avoid a repeatoccurrence <strong>of</strong> what <strong>the</strong> PTTE called ‘policy shock syndrome’, meaning haphazard and uncoordinatedpolicy changes that are <strong>of</strong>ten not given enough time to allow people to judge <strong>the</strong>ir effectiveness (FME2011a).Table 4.1Revised basic education curriculumLower Basic CurriculumPrimary 1–3Core compulsory subjectsMiddle Basic CurriculumPrimary 4–6English Studies English Studies English StudiesOne major Nigerian language(Hausa, Igbo or Yoruba)One major Nigerian language(Hausa, Igbo or Yoruba)Ma<strong>the</strong>matics Ma<strong>the</strong>matics Ma<strong>the</strong>maticsBasic Science and Technology Basic Science and Technology Basic ScienceUpper Basic CurriculumJSS 1–3One major Nigerian language(Hausa, Igbo or Yoruba)Cultural and Creative Arts Cultural and Creative Arts Cultural and Creative ArtsPre-vocational Studies Pre-vocational Studies Pre-vocational StudiesReligion and National Values Religion and National Values Religion and National ValuesElective subjectFrench LanguageFrench LanguageBasic TechnologyBusiness StudiesArabic Language Arabic Language Arabic LanguageSource: Aw<strong>of</strong>ala and Oludola (2013:104)4.2.2 Science and TechnologyDespite widespread recognition <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> importance <strong>of</strong> emphasising Science and Technology in schoolcurricula from primary level upwards, <strong>the</strong> Nigerian government faces huge challenges in relation to<strong>the</strong>se subjects. Most <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> limited <strong>literature</strong> available on Science and Technology in education relatesto post-basic level and to tertiary education in particular (e.g. World Bank 2006; Agyeman 2007).However, it has relevance here since <strong>the</strong> continued dearth <strong>of</strong> adequately trained personnel and <strong>the</strong> lack<strong>of</strong> facilities (e.g. computer suites, laboratory facilities and technical support staff) in many universitiesand colleges <strong>of</strong> education mean that <strong>the</strong>re is an even greater shortage <strong>of</strong> adequately trained personnelat <strong>the</strong> school level (Agyeman 2007). ICT faces additional problems <strong>of</strong> damage to equipment due toirregular power supply and <strong>the</strong> high levels <strong>of</strong> dust during <strong>the</strong> dry season (Iyamu and Ogiegbaen 2007).In <strong>the</strong> meantime, ICT in education remains <strong>the</strong> preserve <strong>of</strong> elite private schools in urban areas and a tinyhandful <strong>of</strong> universities (Agyeman 2007).EDOREN – Education Data, Research and Evaluation in Nigeria 35
Review <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>literature</strong> on basic education in NigeriaAs regards teaching Science, a World Bank syn<strong>the</strong>sis report on Science and Technology education atpost-basic level was positive in highlighting <strong>the</strong> strong political will to prioritise <strong>the</strong>se subjects in Nigeriaand <strong>the</strong> fact that relevant policies are in place (World Bank 2006). However, it also underlined <strong>the</strong> needfor better coordination among <strong>the</strong> various actors and <strong>the</strong> need for more reliable data systems to ga<strong>the</strong>r<strong>the</strong> relevant information to be able to assess progress (ibid.). The school Science curriculum too wascriticised for being overloaded and content driven ra<strong>the</strong>r than focused on skills acquisition. This problemis exacerbated by teacher education institutions that lack <strong>the</strong> facilities and materials necessary fordeveloping teachers’ skills in <strong>the</strong>se areas (Akinbote 2007; Thomas 2011) and by teacher educationprogrammes that are overly <strong>the</strong>oretical, with insufficient emphasis on classroom practice and relevantpedagogies (World Bank 2006; Adekola 2007).The 2004 ESA, citing an NCCE survey in 2001, also pointed out that teachers were not being trained inaccordance with educational needs as articulated in policy. Thus, although policy dictates a Science (andMaths) to Arts ratio <strong>of</strong> 70/30 in terms <strong>of</strong> trainee recruitment, training establishments were stillproducing far more Arts graduates (FME 2005). More recent data were not available to see whe<strong>the</strong>r <strong>the</strong>situation had changed.4.3 The medium <strong>of</strong> instructionThe MOI is a critical determinant in pupils’ ability to access <strong>the</strong> curriculum, as <strong>the</strong> following line <strong>of</strong> Hausaillustrates: Idan baka fahimci wannan yaren ba, to zaka yi gwagwarmaya kafin ka koya. 17 In a paper on<strong>the</strong> state <strong>of</strong> literacy in Nigeria presented at <strong>the</strong> UNESCO Eighth E-9 Ministerial Review Meeting onEducation For All (EFA) held in Abuja in 2010, <strong>the</strong> FME candidly admitted, first, that <strong>the</strong> MOI was a‘much overlooked factor that closely explains <strong>the</strong> poor learning achievement <strong>of</strong> basic, post-basic andsecondary education learners’ and, second, that ‘Nigeria only pays lip-service to mo<strong>the</strong>r-tongueteaching’ (FME 2010: 57).4.3.1 Effects <strong>of</strong> learning in EnglishSeveral studies in Nigeria have highlighted how pupils’ lack <strong>of</strong> pr<strong>of</strong>iciency in English can impede <strong>the</strong>irlearning (Adekola 2007; Hardman et al. 2008; Salami 2008; Little and Lewis 2012; Pinnock 2012; Dunneet al. 2013; Gabrscek and Usman 2013; USAID 2013a, b and c); it can also be a cause <strong>of</strong> non-enrolment,absenteeism, dropout (Dunne et al. 2013) and poor learning outcomes (Adekola 2007). Adekolareported on a comparison <strong>of</strong> UBEC criterion-referenced national assessments in 2001 and 2003 forPrimary 4, 5 and 6 on <strong>the</strong> four core subjects (Maths, English, Social Studies and Science). The studyfound a strong correlation between higher overall scores and competence in English. Even in Maths,questions requiring lower literacy were answered more easily, while <strong>the</strong> study concluded that resultswere generally lower in Social Studies and English precisely because <strong>the</strong>y were dependent on literacy inEnglish. The overall low performance <strong>of</strong> pupils was attributed to pupils’ inability to read <strong>the</strong> test papers.Pupils in more urban areas with pr<strong>of</strong>essional parents and at private schools scored slightly better overall(Adekola 2007). In <strong>the</strong> UBEC national assessments, test administrators also pointed out that pupils werehampered by not understanding test instructions in English.Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, in summarising findings from several national studies, Adekola concludes that, ‘Childrenwere barely literate in ei<strong>the</strong>r a Nigerian language or English and had little foundation in Maths andScience concepts that might have been acquired in <strong>the</strong> early grade if <strong>the</strong> children had been taught in alanguage <strong>the</strong>y understood’ (ibid.: 11). This may well provide at least a partial explanation for <strong>the</strong>observation in <strong>the</strong> large-scale ESSPIN mid-term pupil assessment that noted: ‘As children progressthrough school, an ever-increasing proportion falls behind grade-appropriate standards <strong>of</strong> numeracyand especially literacy’ (ESSPIN 2013a: 14). While <strong>the</strong> report attributed this phenomenon to <strong>the</strong>limitations <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> teaching force and <strong>of</strong> school leadership, it is likely that having English as <strong>the</strong> language17Which translates into English as ‘If you can't understand this language, you'll struggle to learn’.EDOREN – Education Data, Research and Evaluation in Nigeria 36
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