ABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to find out the
effect of Government, Community and Private Sector on the Early Childhood
Education in Ilorin South Local Government Area of Kwara State. A total of 102
questionnaires were distributes to teachers in six (6) randomly selected
primary schools. Descriptive and influential statistics were used to analyze
the data collected. The finding of the study reveals that government (at all
levels), community and private section, all contribute and have significant
effect on early childhood education in Ilorin South Local Government Area of
Kwara State. Based on education policy to stakeholders to enhance desirable
practices and better commitment to the programme. Also, government, communities
and private sectors should ensure that, early childhood education centres have
partnerships with parents and accommodate their need, including good health and
general well-being.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CONTENT
PAGES
Title page…………………………………………………………………………...i
Approval page…............................................................................................ii
Dedication…………………………………………………………………….…...iii
Acknowledgement…………………………………………………….……….…..iv
Abstract.........................................................................................................v
Table of Contents………………………………………………………….……......vi
List of
tables…………………….……………………………………..……..……viii
List of figures………………….…………………………………………..………..ix
CHAPTER
ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Study
…..…………………………………………..………….....1.
1.2 Statement of the problem
.………......………………………………………..…..4
1.3 Purpose of the study
......……………………………………………………….....5
1.4 Research Question
……………………………………………….…………….....6
1.5 Scope and limitation of the study
……………………………..…………….6
1.6 Definition
of Terms……………………………………………..………………...6
CHAPTER
TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
2.1 The concept of Early Childhood
Education ……………………..…….....9
2.1.1 The Contribution of the
Government of Early childhood Education ……...…....10
2.1.2 The Contribution of the
Community on Early Childhood Education ……..…...14
2.1.3 The Contribution of Private
Sector on Early Childhood Education ………....15
2.2 The Challenges in Implementing
Early Childhood Education in Nigeria ..... ....16
CHAPTER
THREE: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 Research Design ............. ……………………………………………………....22
3.2 Population of the Study
......………………………………………………..…....22
3.3 Sample and Sampling Technique
…………….……………………........22
3.4 Instrument for Data Collection
......................................................22
3.5Validity and Reliability of the
Instrument ......................................23
3.6 Procedure for Data Collection
.......................................................23
3.7Method of Data
Analysis..................................................................24
CHAPTER
FOUR: PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF DATA
4.1Analysis
of respondents Characteristics
…………………………..26
4.2
Answering the Research
Question...............................................28
4.3
Summary and Discussion of Findings .........................................32
4.4
Discussion of
Findings......................................................
33
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY,
CONCLUSION
5.1
Summary .........................................................................................40
5.2
Conclusion
.......................................................................................40
5.3
Recommendation.............................................................................41
REFERENCES………………………………………………..……….................42
APPENDIX…………………………………………………………….............…48
LIST
OF TABLES
Table 1: Distribution
of questionnaire among Selected Schools
in
Ilorin South Local
Government..........................................24
Table
2: Respondent by
sex.................................................................25
Table 3: Respondents year of
service…..................................………….26
Figure 1: Graph showing the percentage of
Occurrence of
Teachers Qualification
........................................................27
Table 4: Level of implementation of Early
Childhood
In
Ilorin – South LGA
............................................................28
Table5: Contribution of Government to
Early Childhood
Education in Ilorin-South
LGA.................................................27
Table6: Contribution of Community to Early
Childhood Education in
Ilorin South
LGA...........................................................................28
Table7: Contribution of Private Sector to
Early Childhood Education in
Ilorin South
LGA.......................................................................29
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of Study
Early years in life (Ejieh, 2006) are the
most important to the formation of intelligence, personality and social
behaviour of a child. That is why, as he emphasized, modern societies show
serious concern for the education of their young ones by providing needed
support to prepare them to succeed later in school. It is common practice in
most societies to make provision for early childhood education programmes of
various sorts for children below the official school-going age (usually 6years)
mainly to prepare them for education in primary schools (Obidike, 2012). The
Federal Government of Nigeria recognizes the importance of early childhood
education in Nigeria and as a result it was given prominence in the National
Policy of Education (2004) as one of the programmes in the Nigerian educational
system. Bagudo (2008) posited that reports across the globe revealed that an
estimated figure of one hundred million children, struggle daily for survival
in villages and cities, and are exposed to the risks of hunger, poverty,
disease, illiteracy and abuses.
In support of this view, Mahuta (2007)
stresses that the need to address the problems and salvage these children and
the next generation of children from these menace, has necessitated the
programme of Early Childhood Care Development and Education (ECCDE). Mahuta
(2007) also stated that the aim of ECCDE is to foster the proper development of
the children, identify and address their problems, harness their potentials,
mould their character, enhance their learning, equip them for life, so that
their actions are channelled towards positive personal, communal and global
development in all ramifications of life. A Brief History of Early Childhood
Education in Nigeria, shows that organized education of the child below primary
school age did not receive official recognition until very recently, when it
receive the attention it deserved. The concept of infant schools was introduced
in Nigeria by the missionaries in the early 20th century when such schools were
set up in the Western and Eastern regions of Nigeria. Early Childhood education
in the form of nursery school or pre-primary education as we know it today in
Nigeria is largely a post-colonial development.
The semblances of it during the colonial
era were the Kindergarten and infant classes, which consisted of groups of
children considered not yet ready for primary education. As groping for
instruction in schools was not age-based during that period, some children aged
six or even more, could be found in some of the infant classes (Tor-Anyiin,
2008). With the phasing out of infant classes, some parents began to feel the
need for nursery schools. During that
period, (pre-independence) all efforts for provision of early childhood
education were confined to the voluntary sector and received little or no
support from the government (Tor- Anyiin, 2008). It was for the first time in
1977 with the introduction of National Policy on Education by the then military
government of Nigeria that the importance and need for early childhood
education was given official recognition and linked with the child’s
educational performance in primary school. Gradually, early childhood
institution stayed, and by 1985, Nigeria had about 4200 early childhood
educational institutions which has grown by 1992 in number, to about 8,300
(Federal Government of Nigeria/UNICEF 1993).
The importance of pre-primary education
cannot be overemphasized; it enables children to improve on their
self-confidence since they are given opportunity to interact with their peers
and adults too. Pre-primary education enhances independence and helps curb the
tendency of children that are highly aggressive during group activities.
Children’s interactions with their peers and adults help to widen their scope
of understanding and they also gain mastery of the world around them. Pre-primary
education is vital to the child, parents and society because it permits smooth
transition from home to school, because it enables the child to feel free to
interact with other people outside his immediate family members. The
pre-primary school helps to sharpen the children’s cognitive domain through
learning rhymes and songs; while playing on the slides and swings help in
physical development and build their muscles. Structured play with building
blocks and puzzles, baby dolls, and teddy bears helps in emotional development
of the children.
At the pre-primary school stage, children
learn to share and co-operate with others instead of developing the selfish
tendencies. Exposure to pre-primary education goes a long way to teach each
child how to understand and manage their emotions. The provision of pre-primary
education assists working class parents who have no relation or house help to
take care of their children while they are at work. The children will be
exposed to reading and writing. Statistical research has shown that children
who have experienced early childhood or pre-primary programs are more likely
than other children to remain in primary school and achieve good results
(UNESCO, 1995).
Nigeria’s National Policy on Education
has made some tremendous achievements in the area of the official recognition
of pre-primary level of education in the policy document and this has made it
possible for the establishment of pre-primary schools in Nigeria. This has
raised the status of pre-primary education to the lime light and it is no
longer a backyard issue. As rightly stated by Maduewesi (1992) that recognition
of the importance of pre-primary education by the federal government has led to
a new awareness of the importance of young children as a group requiring and
desiring care. The government stated that it will encourage private efforts in
the provision of pre-primary education. Today private individuals have been
allowed to set up nursery schools.
For
most children, interior of the home and its immediate surroundings are the
first environments they experiences throughout their early years. Yong
children, spend the majority of their time in the home. Home environments have
been shown to be a major factor that influences the overall development of
children. Within the home, children also have their early interactions with
thee members of their family, and availability and quality of resources for
learning and playing largely determine the nature of these interactions.
Availability of stimulating objects, books and play materials within the home
are critical indicators for the overall quality of the home environmental
hazards, environmental stress and impacts of poverty. This body of research
strongly indicated the physical aspects of the home such as cleanliness, water,
nose and pollution influence the overall health and development of children.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Early childhood education is a type
of education provided for children 0-3 years in Day Care Centres and for
children 3years to less than 6 years in Nursery schools (Uzodinma &
Akinware,2001).It is acommunity-based, low-cost project for the holistic
development of the child from 0-6 years. National Association for the Education
ofYoung Children-NAEYC (1991) defines ECE as the education of young children
from birth through age eight. It is a comprehensive approach to policies and
programs for children from birth to eight years of age. The purpose of Early
Child Educationis to protect the child’s rights to develop his or her full cognitive,
emotional, social and physical potentials.It couldbe at home, a day-care centre,
play group/crèche, nursery, kindergarten and lower primary. Osanyin(2012)
highlighted other terms often used interchangeably with Early Childhood
Education (ECE) which include: Early Childhood Learning (ECL), Early Childhood
Care (ECC), Early Childhood Development (ECD), Early Childhood Care and
Education (ECCE), Early Child Care Development and Education (ECCDE) and Early
Care (EC).
According to Wall, Litjens and Taguma
(2015), Quality is the most significant factor underlying the degree and the
persistence of the impact of early childhood education. It was noted that
international studies have differing perspectives on what constitutes quality,
but some common components can be found (OECD, 2012). Structural quality refers
to aspects such as class size, teacher-child ratio, formal staff qualification
levels and size of the setting (Anders, 2015), while process quality focuses on
the processes in early childhood education settings. A salient factor affecting
process quality is context, and in particular, the interactions a young child
experiences with his/her direct environment (Litjens and Taguma, 2010cited in
Wall, Litjens and Taguma, 2015), as well as with space and materials (Anders,
2015). Quality is a relatively value-based concept that is wholly constructed
and subjective. Hence, there is no single model of early childhood education
that is effective in all settings. However, there is a general acceptance that
programmes that benefit young children must be of quality that is embedded
within their families’ cultures and values (Olaleye, Florence & Omotayo,
2009).
The researcher is therefore out to
find the contribution of the government, community and private sector to early
childhood education in view of its quality.
1.3 Purpose of the study
The broad objective of this study is to critically
examine the effect of the government, community and private sector on early
child education in Nigeria, specifically in the geographical location of Ilorin
South, Kwara State. The specific objectives are to:
•
examine how much the early childhood education is being implemented in Ilorin
South Local Government Area, Kwara state.
•
examine the contributions of government, private sector and community on ECCE
in Ilorin South local Government Area, Kwara state.
• examine how the level of Early Childhood
Education can be strengthened in Ilorin South Local Government Area, Kwara
state.
1.4 Research Questions
The following questions were raised to
guide this study:
1) What
is the level of early child education in Ilorin South Local Government Area of
Kwara State?
2) Does
the contribution of government has any significant effect on early childhood
education in Ilorin South Local Government Area of Kwara State?
3) Does
the contribution of community has any significant effect on early childhood
education in Ilorin South Local Government Area of Kwara State?
4) Does
the contribution of private sector has any significant effect on early
childhood education in Ilorin South Local Government Area of Kwara State?
1.5 Scope and limitations of the study
This study is concerned with the effect of
the government, community and private sector on early child education in
Nigeria. This study covers only ECCE in public primary schools in Ilorin South
Local Government Area of Kwara State, due to the limited resource available to
the researcher.
1.6 Definition of Terms
In
order to avoid any ambiguity, the following terms are defined in the context
that they are used in this study.
Government:
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community,
often a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government
normally consists of legislature, administration, and judiciary.
Community: A
community is a small or large social unit (a group of living
things) who have something in common, such as norms, religion, values, or
identity.
Private sector: The
Private Sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as
the citizen sector, which is run by private individuals or
groups, usually as a means of enterprise for profit, and is not controlled by
the State.
Effect: a change which is
a result or consequence of an action or other cause.
Early Childhood Care Education: This
refers to educational system that precedes primary education in Nigeria’s
educational system.
Education: Education is the process of
facilitating learning, or the acquisition of knowledge, skills, values,
beliefs, and habits. Educational methods include storytelling, discussion, teaching,
training, and directed research.
L.G.E.A: Local Government Area.
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