Historical Analysis of Nomadic Education in North-Central Nigeria: 1988-2011
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Date
2019
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Department of Social Sciences Education, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria
Abstract
In a bid to enhance the access of nomads to education and also to translate into action the philosophy of equality of educational opportunities, the Federal Government of Nigeria introduced a special education programme called Nomadic Education in 1986. Following this, all the states of the federation with large concentration of nomadic Fulani were directed by the Federal Government to launch the programme in their respective states. All the states in North-central, because they have large population of Fulani, launched the programme in 1988. This study, therefore, traced the trends in the historical development of nomadic education in North-central Nigeria: 1988-2011. Specifically, the study analysed trends in the establishment of nomadic schools in North-central Nigeria from 1988-2011; trends in the enrolment of pupils in nomadic schools in North-central Nigeria from 1988-2011; and the challenges facing Nomadic Education in North-central Nigeria from 1988-2011.
This study adopted the historical research method, relying on both primary and secondary sources. The population of the study comprised all relevant stakeholders in nomadic education programme: the officials, head teachers and nomads. A total number of 974 respondents were sampled in the study using a multi-stage sampling technique. The researchers relied on official documents for the generation of data. Also, pro forma and Challenges of Nomadic Education Questionnaire (CNEQ) were used to gather data for the study. Test re-test reliability co-efficient of 0.87 was obtained on CNEQ. The data obtained were analysed using the percentage.
The findings of the study revealed that there was an upward trend in the number of Nomadic Schools in North-central Nigeria from 1988-2011; the enrolment rate of nomadic school pupils in North-central Nigeria between 1988 and 2011 fluctuated, reaching its lowest level in 1988 (1,614 pupils) and highest level in 2007 (78,639 pupils); teachers’ truancy, inadequate supervision, cultural issues, irrelevant curriculum, lacks of interest in schooling on the part of nomads, inadequate infrastructural facilities in nomadic setting, inadequate funding, and lack of cooperation between the nomads and the host community were some of the challenges faced by Nomadic Education in North Central Nigeria. Based on the findings, it was recommended that government should make adequate provision for infrastructural facilities, such as boreholes, stock routes and so on in nomadic settings. Government should also embark on constant awareness campaign to encourage and sustain the enrolment in nomadic schools.
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Keywords
History, Historical Analysis, Nomadic education