THE ROLE OF ADULT LITERACY EDUCATION PROGRAMME (A CASE STUDY OF ETSAKO EAST L.G.A EDO STATE)

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Community needs are on the increase with little attention been received from the government. Members of any community need to strategize so that development will reach them without delay. Many programmes have been initiated for community development but these programmes end up not seeing the light of day. Education too has been the only avenue for community development, but many after obtaining their certificates will opt out to work outside their communities and in some instances never return. Education is the commonest avenue for giving a community better development using the members of the community – the adult. Adult Education has been in place to reach out to adult members but the need to re-engineer this form of education for better usage in the community is paramount. Blaisdell (1996) opined that re-engineering education is demonstration of the value which an educational promotion programme can add to a group of people or an area. Education is a weapon of development of the people in a society. It helps to promote understanding and cooperation among a group of people for the present and the future. It helps to create peace through understanding and respect for individual differences. In the community, adult education is the most needed education for the fact that it helps communities to be mobilized for contributing towards their own development for their survival and their future generation. Education as an entity is classified into two: formal and non-formal education, (Ogwo and Oranu, 2013). According to Smith (2016), formal education is the hierarchically structured chronologically graded education system running from primary school through the university and including, in addition to general academic studies, a variety of specialized programmes and institutions for fulltime technical and professional training. In the same vein, National Policy on Education (FGN, 2016) defined non-formal education as all forms of functional education given to youths and adults outside the formal school system such as functional literacy, remedial and vocational education. Smith (2016) added that non-formal education is any organized educational activity outside the established formal system – whether operating separately or as an important feature of some broader activity – that is intended to serve identifiable learning clientele and learning objectives. It is on the basis of National Policy on Education definition, where non-formal education includes adult education that this write-up will emphasize on. The same definition equally added that non-formal education is to cover literacy, post-literacy, continuing education, civic education, correspondence education and self-improvement classes outside formal education for anybody who cannot have access to formal education system. Adult education is the education that is given to adults that are not opportune to attend formal school system that will help them acquire knowledge and vocational skills so as to make them more productive in the society, (Ogwo, 2009). Adult Education cannot be worthy of acknowledgement without making mention of its positive impact on the community or involvement in community development in which an individual lives. According to Uwaka (2014), Community development is a term seen as the process by which efforts of the people themselves are united, with those of the government to improve the economic, social and cultural conditions of the people to integrate them into the life of the nation and to enable them to contribute fully to national progress.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Nigeria’s economy has been bedevilled by poor infrastructural facility development and maintenance, depending on imported goods and services, reliance on a single economic sector, weak industrial capacity, inefficient and ineffective public utilities and low literacy level. These problems constitute a cog in the wheel of Nigeria’s economic growth and development and as a result hinder human growth and development and improved human well-being. Adult education is very vital to addressing these problems because it provides adult with the necessary skills, attitudes, knowledge, values, beliefs required to trigger social and economic development of any society. Education, which is the backbone of developed nation in instrumental in the development of the developing nations like Nigeria. The level of adult education has been the major concern of the government as well as private individual since the launching of mass literacy campaign in 1982 by the federal government. The status of adult as at now in the educational system is very much more viewed with apathy by adults as by government agents. Politicians see it as an important instrument for development but the patriotic support for this programme dwindles the moment they get to the office. These problems range from inadequate finance, lack of enthusiasm on the part of the learners and instructors, inadequate infrastructure and materials and ignorance on the part of the clientele. It therefore with these problems in mind that this study is carried out. In the view of the above, the study looks at the problems involved in the organization of adult’s literacy programme in Egor local government area of Edo state was has contributed to its present status.

1.3 AIMS OF THE STUDY

The major purpose of this study is to examine the role of adult literacy education programme. Other general objectives of the study are:

1. To examine the nature of Adult Education in Nigeria.

2. To examine the characteristics of the adult education participants in Etsako East, Edo state.

3. To examine the role of adult literacy Education Programme in Etsako East, Edo state.

4. To examine the contributions of adult education in achieving sustainable development in Etsako East, Edo state.

5. To examine the relationship between role of adult literacy education programs and sustainable development.

6. To examine the challenges that inhibits adult education in achieving sustainable development in Etsako East, Edo state.

1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. What is the nature of Adult Education in Nigeria?

2. What are the characteristics of the adult education participants in Etsako East, Edo state?

3. What are the roles of adult literacy Education Programme in Etsako East, Edo state?

4. What are the contributions of adult literacy education in achieving sustainable development in Etsako East, Edo state?

5. What is the relationship between role of adult literacy education programs and sustainable development?

6. What are the challenges that inhibit adult education in achieving sustainable development in Etsako East, Edo state?

1.5 RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

Hypothesis 1

H0: Adult literacy Education Programme does not influence sustainable development in Etsako East, Edo state.

H1: Adult literacy Education Programme significantly influences sustainable development Etsako East, Edo state.

Hypothesis 2

H0: There is no significant relationship between role of adult literacy education programs and sustainable development

H1: There is a significant relationship between role of adult literacy education programs and sustainable development

1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The result of this study will be significant in a number of ways. It will be beneficial to instructors and participants of adult education programmes. It will enable them determine the extent to which adult education is utilized in achieving sustainable development. It will also enable them contribute to future directors of adult education for greater effectiveness. It will also be beneficial to Etsako East Local Government Area and other local government areas that run adult education programmes. The findings of the study will enlighten the local government administrators on the significant position adult education occupies in the development process. This will make them give better attention to adult education through better funding, personnel development and better organization of the programmes. It will also be beneficial to Governments at both the national and state levels. The findings of the study will be an eye opener to those in government because it will help change their view of adult education as a disorganized programme. It will give them an insight into the real role adult education plays in sustainable development. This will help them pay better attention to adult education and probably give adult education equal status with other types of education. This they can do through adequate funding and management of adult education programmes and through policy review. It will be significant to adult education curriculum developers. Knowledge of the extent of the utilization of adult education in sustainable development will enable the curriculum developers determine how far adult education has succeeded in its quest for development. This will help them review the curriculum in relevant areas where they are deficient and also design new curriculum, as the case may be, to facilitate the use of adult education in development. The study will also be significant to policy makers. It will enable them critically look at the current policy on adult education and determine the need to make the policy more relevant and stronger than it is at present. Finally, it will be useful to the general public because it will help change the wrong image people have about adult education. They will know the role of adult education in development and accord the support needed to make adult education grow.

1.7    SCOPE OF THE STUDY 

The study is based on the role of adult literacy education programme, a case study of Etsako east L.G.A Edo state.

1.8 LIMITATION OF STUDY

Financial constraint- Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).

Time constraint- The researcher will simultaneously engage in this study with other academic work. This consequently will cut down on the time devoted for the research work.

1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS

Adult education: can be defined as any education given to adult person’s men and women. Adult education is sometimes defined as the education provided for all men and women who are aged 21 and above. This is a biological definition based in the assumption that adult is one who is aged 21 and above. 

Literacy: can be defined as the ability to read, write and speak a language as well as the ability to compute in broad terms, literacy is the ability to make and communicate meaning from and by the use of a variety of socially contextual symbols. According to (Cunningham, 2010) and Harste, 1994) literacy has for instance, expanded to include literacy information and communication technologies and critical literacy.

Non-formal adult education: can be defined as the training and instruction which takes place outside the formal education system or within the four walls of institutions adult and non formal education may be aimed also at young people who legally have not attained adult status, but for whom there is no further provision within the school system.

Adult literacy education: Adult education is thus sometime using the programmes as the basis for an operational definition. For example, adult education been defined as adult literacy education. The weakness of this definition is that it excludes the body of knowledge accumulated in per literate and non literate societies. Yet it is known that such societies provided some knowledge and skills averting most facts of human endeavour religion, politics, work, and play. Language health and morals.