A STUDY ON THE PROBLEMS FACING SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATION IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

INTRODUCTION

Our focus in this chapter is to critically examine relevant literature that would assist in explaining the research problem and furthermore recognize the efforts of scholars who had previously contributed immensely to similar research. The chapter intends to deepen the understanding of the study and close the perceived gaps.

Precisely, the chapter will be considered in three sub-headings:

 Conceptual Framework

 Theoretical Framework

 Chapter Summary

2.1 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

Concept of Education

According to National Policy on Education(1979), Education is the process of acquiring knowledge. It is a tool for person’s development, the single most powerful weapon against poverty, and a fundamental human right to which we all are entitled. It gives people the opportunity to improve on their health, raise productivity and help foster participation in civil society. Education is a process of keeping the world and our society intact and in fostering the development and growth upon which human survival and progress depends. It the development of process of equipping individuals with knowledge and skills to enable them solve the complex problems of living usefully for themselves, their families and make worthwhile contribution to the overall progress and development of the overall progress and development of the society. “Thus the educational process has been described as the intentional transmission of something worthwhile or desirable in a morally acceptable manner. It is the all-round development of a person physically, intellectually, morally, and spiritually. This implies that education encourages a wholesome development of the individual through participation in the activities of the social group, and that there must be a guide who can direct such education in a way that can result in all round development of a person. Education is a tool for national development, the single most powerful weapon against poverty, and a fundamental human right to which we all are entitled. It gives people the opportunity to improve health, raise productivity and help foster participation in civil society. Education is a process of keeping the world and our society intact and in fostering the development and growth upon which human survival and progress depends.

Okeke D. (2009) further asserts that Education is the process of providing information to an inexperienced person to help him/her develop physically, mentally, socially, emotionally, spiritually, politically and economically. That is why at graduation ceremonies one hears the Vice-Chancellors pronounce these words while awarding degrees to their institutions’ graduates, “you have been found worthy in character and learning…” In education parlance, it means that the individual has acquired adequate and appropriate knowledge, skills and attitudes and values, known as cognitive, psychomotor and affective behaviours to be able to function optimally as a citizen. These behaviors are the focus of training individuals in institutions of learning .

The planned and systematic training given in an institution of learning is formal education. The programme or is organized, planned and systematically implemented. In an informal education, there is no plan and the training is haphazard and incidental. Education is the process through which individuals are made functional members of their society (Ocho, J. 2005). It is a process through which the young acquires knowledge and realizes her potentialities and uses them for self-actualization, to be useful to herself and others. It is a means of preserving, transmitting and improving the culture of the society. In every society education connotes acquisition of something good, something worthwhile. Education is one of the fundamental rights of individuals. Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in December, 1949 stipulated that:

 Everyone has the right to education.

 This shall be free at least in the elementary and primary stages.

 Elementary education shall be compulsory while technical and professional

 Education shall be made generally available.

 Higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.

According to Nwangwu, (1976) cited in Etim, M. (2013) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children. Why should everyone have the right to education? The answers to this question are given thus:

 The child is born helpless and has to rely entirely on parents and other older members of the society to survive and satisfy her growth needs in all their ramifications

 The degree and quality of participation in the life of the society depends to a large extent on the degree and quality of her education. This will enable her perform her political and other citizenship duties and exercise the rights pertaining thereto effectively.

Kingley,A. (2015) further explained that every citizen benefits from the result of the education of her fellow citizen and since every generation receives its education from an older generation, every generation has a duty to reciprocate by educating the generation that comes after it.. There is an adage that says “educate a man, you educate an individual, but educate a woman, you educate a nation” The above summarizes the essence of education to the girl-child and indeed, to every educable human being, and so calls for special attention to be focused on education of the girl-child. No nation can afford to toy with the education of her citizens, especially, the child, who will be the father or mother of tomorrow, because education is the bedrock of all facets of development. Children are future leaders of tomorrow and mothers are guardians of the future, and the first aim of every family and society should be to raise healthy and productive individuals who are physically, psychologically, socially, and mentally well developed. These can be achieved through the education of the girl-child who is the mother of tomorrow.

Standards of Education in Nigeria

The term “”Standards of Education” is used throughout this presentation in its conventional dictionary sense, to mean: a level of quality or achievement, especially a level that is thought to be acceptable to the education system”. Thus, standards of education pertains to the intrinsic worth of school-based instruction provided to its citizenry in terms of policies, teachers, infrastructures, instructional materials, teaching mythologies as well as the processes associated with examinations. Hence, quality in education should lead to demonstrable gains in knowledge, skills and values.

The Federal Republic of Nigeria (2014) prescribes the minimum standards of education at all levels to include:

a. i} In Pre-primary Schools, there should not be more than 20 pupils to a Teacher and a helper {assistant};

ii} In Primary and Secondary Schools, there shall not be more than 35 and 40 pupils respectively to a class;

iii} In technical and Vocational colleges, there shall not be more than 20 pupils for practical work.

b. Primary, Post-Primary and Tertiary Education shall be the responsibility of the local, state and Federal governments.

c. Education boards or similar authorities shall be responsible for the management of schools and appointment, posting and discipline of teachers within defined areas of authority. d. Special and adequate inducement shall be provided for teachers in rural areas to make them stay on their jobs.

The above statements are obviously aimed at maintaining minimum standards in our educational system at all levels. Again, the question to ask is whether the current Nigerian educational system has so far been able to maintain and, possibly, improve upon the enunciated minimum standards?

Factors Responsible for Poor Standard of Education in Nigeria

It is generally recognized fact in education circles that the competence of a teacher is proportionally linked to the level of academic attainment of his/ her students. Thus, a teacher who is academically and professionally qualified can significantly contribute to improving the standard of education within the institution in which he / she works, while an unqualified teacher can only contribute towards diminishing whatever minimum standards that may be operational in the school system. It is in this regard that teachers who do not have requisite academic and professional teaching qualifications would certainly have negative influence on the teaching and learning process that takes place within the typical school environment. Other key factors which also frequently bring about low standards in education include the following:

Unfavorable conditions of Service •

Trend of Examination misconduct •

Lack of basic Educational / Laboratory facility •

Poor Funding and Political will • Ineffective administration •

Poor availability of Educational technology •

Poor teaching performance of the teachers.

Secondary Education in Nigeria

It was the recommendations from the 1977 seminar that culminated into what is today known as the national policy on education. The national policy on education (usually referred to as NPE) has provided for some broad aims of secondary education, as contained in section 4 subsection 18 of the policy (2004). They include:

a. Provide an increasing number of primary school pupils with no opportunity for education of a higher quality, irrespective of sex or social, religious, and ethnic background;

b. Diversify its curriculum to cater for difference in talents, opportunities and roles possessed by or open to students after their secondary school course;

c. Equip students to live effectively in our modern age of science and technology;

d. Develop and project Nigerian culture, art and language as well as the world's cultural heritage;

e. Raise a generation of people who can think for themselves, respect the views and feelings of others, respect the dignity of labour, and appreciate those values specified under our broad national aims, and live as good citizens;

f. Faster Nigerian unity with an emphasis on the common lies that unite use in our diversity;

g. Inspire its students with a desire for achievement and self-improvement both at school and in late life.

Secondary education is of six-year duration and given in two stages, junior and senior levels of three years each. Secondary education completes the provision of basic education that began at the primary level, and aims at laying the foundations for lifelong learning and human development, by offering more subject- or skill-oriented instruction. The introduction of universal basic education (UBE) in 1989 as a follow up to the 1977 universal free primary education (UPE) was also an important educational milestone which became a major focus of government in line with its drive to reform the sector. In 2006 government has also worked out a 10-year education development plan as part of the drive to reform the education sector. In 2009 a roadmap for the revitalization of the education sector was conceptualized and introduced. The roadmap was introduced mainly because of the sorry state in which the education sector found itself. The quality of education had declined so much that many of the graduates produced by the nation’s tertiary institutions were simply unemployable. Teachers’ morale was also at an alltime low. The sector remains grossly under-funded and basic school necessities like laboratories and well-equipped libraries were simply not there. The roadmap had four components: Access and Equity, Quality Assurance, Technical and Vocational Education and Training and Funding. The document outlines improvement and turn-around strategies for each of the sub sectors of education namely basic, post-basic and tertiary. The roadmap seemed really divorced from the general problems of underdevelopment in the society. The major problems identified with the sector: funding, access and quality were more of a typical characteristic of underdevelopment. Early in 2012 a four-year strategic plan for the education sector was unveiled by the Minister of Education, Professor Ruqayyatu Ahmad Rufa’i which would hopefully transform it by 2015. The main goal of the Strategic Plan is that by 2015, there would be significant changes in the state of the educational institutions as well as the quality of the products. The Plan identified and classified the challenges and concerns in the education system into some focal areas as follows: access and equity; standard and quality assurance; strengthening institutional management of education; teacher education and development; technical and vocational education and training; funding partnerships; resource mobilization and utilization. The Plan had also evolved some turnaround strategies for meaningful achievement of the focal areas. Timelines as well as those responsible for their implementation were also clearly identified. These are but just some examples of the major attempts to revitalize education in Nigeria. The likely questions now lie mainly in whether or not these excellent reform strategies have done the magic or at least, are still working and yielding the desired results or they remain like all others before them, the usual window dressing strategies and mere plans on paper.

Scope And Purposes Of Secondary Education In Nigeria’s Context

Secondary education is provided for children after primary education, that is, before tertiary education. It is aimed at developing a child better than the primary level, because it is obvious that primary education is insufficient for children to acquire literacy, numeracy, and communication skills (Ige, 2011; Yusuf, 2009). Such education is provided in secondary school, which can be owned by government (state or federal), individuals or community. It is divided into two phases as follows:

Junior Secondary Phase

This is the first three years of secondary education. The curriculum at this phase is pre-vocational and academic in scope. Core, pre-vocational and non-prevocational subjects are included in the curriculum. The core subjects include: English Language, Mathematics, French, and a major Nigerian language other than that of Environment, Basic Science, Social Studies, Citizenship Education, and Basic Technology. The pre-vocational subjects include Agricultural Science, Business Studies, Home Economics, Local Crafts, Fine Arts, Computer Education and Music while the non-prevocational subjects include Religious Knowledge, Physical and Health Education as well as Arabic. Certification at the end of this phase depends on the performance of a student in Continuous Assessment (CA) and the results of Junior School Certificate Examination (JSCE), being coordinated by State Ministries of Education or Federal Ministry of Education (if owned by Federal Government). A child has to do the Junior School Certificate Examination (JSCE) at the end of this phase. A child with minimum number of passes in the subjects in the curriculum including English Language and Mathematics (varies across the States) qualifies to proceed to the Senior Secondary (SS) level where he/she will be trained for additional three years. A child that fails the JSCE (that is those without the minimum passes including English Language and Mathematics) is expected to enroll in technical college, an out-of-school vocational training centre or an apprenticeship scheme, in line with the 6-3-3-4 system of education.

Senior Secondary Phase

This is the next three years after Junior secondary phase. It has wider scope than the Junior Secondary (JS) phase and aims at broadening the knowledge and skills of a student beyond the JS level and thus prepares him/her for further education. It is academic and vocational in scope. A student has to offer minimum of seven and maximum of eight subjects, comprising the six core subjects: English Language, Mathematics, a major Nigerian language, one science, an art, and a vocational subject. One or two other electives are to be selected from the art, science, technical, social science, and vocational subjects. Certification at the end of this phase depends on the performance of a student in the Continuous Assessment (CA) and Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), coordinated by West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and National Examinations Council (NECO). A child must obtain a minimum of five credits at two sittings including English Language and Mathematics to be able to proceed to the tertiary level of the educational system. In Nigeria, secondary education aims at preparing an individual for:

- Useful living within the society, and

- Higher education. Specifically, it aims at:

- Providing all primary school leavers with the opportunity for education of higher level irrespective of sex, social status, religious or ethnic background;

- Offering diversified curriculum to cater for differences in talents, opportunities, and future roles;

- Providing trained manpower in applied science, technology and commerce at sub-professional grades;

- Developing and promoting Nigerian languages, arts and culture in the context of the world’s cultural heritage;

- Inspiring students with a desire for self improvement and achievement of excellence;

- Fostering national unity with an emphasis on the common ties that unite us in our diversity;

- Raising a generation of people who can think for themselves, respect the views and feelings of others, respect the dignity of labour, appreciate those values specified under our broad national goals, and live as good citizens; and

- Providing technical knowledge and vocational skills, necessary for agricultural, industrial, commercial, and economic development (National Policy on Education, 2004).

Challenges Of Secondary Education

It is not a gainsaying that secondary education is unique in the educational development of a child, being the link between primary and tertiary education. The knowledge, skills, values, and traits which a child acquires at this stage will complement those acquired at the primary level and when these are combined will prepare such child for tertiary education. In spite of the role of secondary education, Ajayi (2002) and Omoregie (2005) reported that it is riddled with crises of various dimensions and magnitude all of which combine to suggest that it is at crossroad. An examination of secondary education in Nigeria reveals the following challenges that are plaguing it and undermining the achievement of its objectives.

Poor Primary Education

Primary education is the recruitment ground for secondary education. If this section of education is weak it will affect the secondary education in the country. The Universal Primary Education (UPE) was launched in 1976 to boost primary education in Nigeria. This was a good scheme but did not last due to premature way it was launched. There is no doubt that the UPE programme, had it been that it was properly given some time and adequate preparation for the implementation, it would have been one of the best programmes that Nigeria education ever had. And now the Universal Basic Education [UBE] has been introduced, the society is yet to see its success or failure. Consequently, the products of primary education could not prepare adequate grounds for quality production of secondary education products.

Inadequate fund

The importance of adequate funding in educational development cannot be overemphasized. No organization can carry out its function effectively without adequate financial resources at its disposal. According to Obe (2009), without adequate funding, standards of education at any level shall be tantamount to a mirage, that is, building castles in the air. Money is important in a school because it is used to construct buildings, purchase needed equipment, pay staff’ salaries and allowances, maintain the plants and keep the services going. In Nigeria, secondary education derives its major fund from the annual allocation to the education sector. Unfortunately, allocation to the education sector on which secondary education depends has been consistently low in spite of the strategic role of the sector in the training of manpower for the development of the economy. Statistics (Central Bank of Nigeria, 2010) revealed that between 2000 and 2010, allocation to the education sector by Federal Government in Nigeria was not more than 14% of the annual budget, which was even low when compared to the allocation of countries such as Kenya, Malawi, Botswana, Angola, Sierra Leone, South Africa, all in Sub-Saharan Africa (United Nations Development Programme, 2011). Furthermore, out of the three levels of education in Nigeria, tertiary education receives the largest share of Education Vote (Hinchlifee, 2002), thus implying that the remaining fund is to be shared by primary and secondary education (Hinchlifee, 2002). It has even been the practice of states to make provision for secondary education from the allocation to the education sector, which in most cases has been in form of running grant to schools, on term or session basis and depending on the size of enrolment of each school. Unfortunately, complaints of inadequate fund for the development of secondary education in Nigeria abound in literature (Omoregie, 2005; Jaiyeoba and Atanda, 2003; Moja, 2000; Federal Ministry of Education, 2003), which is attributed to lack of/inadequate as well as decay infrastructural facilities in secondary schools (Omoregie, 2005; Ahmed, 2003). To worsen the situation, the limited allocation to secondary education is being threatened by increase in enrolment as a result of the rise in the demand for it (Federal Ministry of Education, 2007; CBN, 2010; Jaiyeoba and Atanda, 2003).

Inadequate and decay infrastructural facilities

School facilities are the material resources that facilitate effective teaching and learning in schools. Jaiyeoba and Atanda (2003) posited that they are things which enable a skillful teacher to achieve a level of instructional effectiveness that exceeds what is possible when they are not provided. Availability of infrastructures and facilities in the right quantity and quality is germane in education provision. A school with inadequate classrooms and facilities such as chairs, lockers, libraries, textbooks, laboratories, workshop will be uncomfortable for pupils/students to learn. Unfortunately, there are inadequate infrastructure and facilities in many secondary schools in Nigeria (CBN, 2010). According to Ahmed (2003), in most secondary schools in the country, teaching and learning take place under unconducive environment, lacking the basic materials, thus hindering the fulfillment of educational objectives.

Inadequate And Low Quality Teachers

Teachers are the fulcrum on which the lever of educational system rests (Achimugu, 2005). Apart from students, they are the largest and most crucial inputs of educational system who influence to a great extent the quality of educational output (Fadipe, 2003). In the National Policy on Education (2004), it is stated that no educational system can rise above the quality of the teachers. In spite of the role of teachers in educational system, issues of inadequacy and low quality teachers in secondary schools in Nigeria are prevalent (Moja, 2000; Omorege, 2005; Federal Ministry of Education, 2003; CBN, 2010). The report of the road map for Nigerian Education Sector by Federal Ministry of Education (2009a) specifically revealed that there was shortfall of 581 teachers in Junior Secondary Schools and 39,023 teachers in Senior Secondary Schools in Nigeria as at then. Obanya (2006), cited in Wasagu (2006), also reported the findings of a study of Secondary Education in four States in Nigeria (Enugu, Kaduna, Lagos, and River) as follows:

- There were shortfalls in the supply of secondary school teachers in the four states;

- The shortfall affects every subject taught at the secondary schools;

- Subjects such as Religious Studies, Commerce were also characterized by shortage of teachers;

- Mother tongue languages (Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba) were also characterized by inadequate teachers;

- Mathematics and technical/vocational subjects topped the list of teacher’s deprived subjects; and

- Lagos, the most economically endowed among the four states had the highest list of teachers’ deprived subjects.

The inadequacy of teachers is noticeable mostly in the core subjects such as English Language, Mathematics, French, and Sciences (Ndefo et al., 2006, cited in Okorodudu, 2011) and in the rural areas (Arhebo et al.,2009; Ediho, 2009). Although Nigerian Certificate in Education (NCE) is the minimum qualification for teaching in the educational system (National Policy on Education, 2004), many secondary schools’ teachers still parade lower qualifications such as Grade II certificate thus implying that they are unfit for teaching (FME, 2007, 2009b). UNESCO (2006) report indicates that in 2005/2006, the enrolment at the Junior Secondary Schools was 3,624,163 while the number of teachers was 61,938 out of whom 73.3% were qualified. Within the same year, the number of teachers at the Senior Secondary Schools was 74,841 out of whom 73% were qualified.

Unnecessary Changes in School Curriculum

Another problem is that of frequent changes in school curriculum .Both primary and secondary education suffered unnecessary changes in curriculum, the reason being that every in-coming administration would like to effect a change whether positive or negative. The moment there is a change in primary school curriculum it will definitely affect the secondary education. To buttress this point further, it is important to examine the structural flowchart of the National Policy on Education (NPE). The structure or flow chart of NPE does not help matters much. If there is any thing worth while, the structure did not minimize the problem the education sector is now experiencing. For instance education in Nigeria is heavily geared towards the acquisition of certificates and nothing more than that. A Close look at the flow-chart of the NPE shows that the beginning of the entire major segments of education invariably terminate at the university level. For example the base line of our education is the new 3-3-secondary school system.

There are at least five possible routes that can be followed after the three years of junior or three-year senior secondary school to get university education.

Other Possible Routes to University

i. Route 1 through NCE for a 3-year or 2-year degree programme

ii. Route 2 through the senior School certificate (SSCE)4-year degree programme.

iii. Route 3 through remedial Including schools of Basic Studies 3 or 4-year degree course

iv. Route 4 through HND for a 3 or 4-year degree programme

v. Route 5 through OND a 4-year degree course

In summary, the aspiration of the products of each level of education ladder is to finish up at the university. This does not augur well for the future of Nigeria education and for that reason; something needs to be done to arrest the situation before it goes out of hand. Using internal criteria for measuring the quality of Nigerian education, it is hoped that enough statistics can be collated to show that the country is not doing too badly in school certificate, teacher education, technical education and other examinations. Moreno (2006) states that educational reform all over the world is increasingly in curriculum based, as mounting pressures and demands for change tend to target and focus on both the structure and the content of school curricula. Arising from the revolution in objectives, some radical changes were made in content. At primary, secondary and tertiary institutions, the contents of subjects studied were reviewed so that they would gear towards achieving the set objectives. The provision for a core curriculum is also a significant change. The aims of these changes are to guarantee an all round education for the learners and to bring some degree of diversity into the curriculum level, ten subjects are to be taken. Two of these ten subjects, agriculture and home economics are to be deferred to later years of primary school. At the junior secondary school level, a student is required to take eleven subjects, nine of which shall be common to all core subjects. A major innovation here is the requirement for technical and vocational subjects tagged as pre-vocational subjects. In all, a student may take a minimum of eleven subjects and a maximum of thirteen subjects. The electives are in three groups. Every student is expected to take all seven core subjects, a minimum of one and a maximum of three from the list of elective subjects offered at the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) In addition, a range of new courses and programmes have been introduced that are relevant to today’s needs and problems such as the issues of HIV/AIDS, moral philosophy, gender and given a core status in their relevant levels of education.

Negative attitudes of teachers

In Nigeria, teaching has low status (Achimugu, 2005) while many teachers are involved in unwholesome practices such as examination malpractices, absenteeism from school and classes, late coming to school and classes, inappropriate and non-keeping of records, trading within and outside school, commercial driving, immoral relationship with female students, extortion of money from students, drinking and smoking during official hours (Ajayi and Shofoyeke, 2003; Adeyemi and Ige, 2002; Achimugu, 2005; Famade, 2001). The inability of teachers to show commitment to teaching in schools has been attributed to the unseriousness, indiscipline, poor academic performance of students in schools (Adeyemi and Ige, 2002; Nanna, 1997) which have continued to be of concern to secondary schools’ administrators, government, parents/guardians and other education stakeholders.

Staff Low Morale

Teachers are the centre piece of any educational system; no education can rise above the quality of its teachers. Teachers whose morale are low are not likely to perform as expected in the school system According to Agayi and Oguntoye (2003). The numerous problems permeating the entire educational system in Nigeria such as cultism, examination malpractice drug abuse, indiscipline, persistent poor academic performance of students in public examinations and many more seem to suggest that teachers have not been performing their job as expected. Fadipe (2003) commented that teachers, apart from students are the largest most crucial inputs of an educational system. They influence to a great extent the quality of the educational output. Teachers’ irregular promotions, low pay package, societal perception of the job and many more have dampened the morale of teachers. When teachers are not motivated, their level of job commitment may be low and the objectives of the school may not be accomplished.

Indiscipline of students

Students are expected to display high-level moral etiquette to show that they are from good homes. The behavior of a child outside reflects the situation in his/her home. A student is expected to obey the school rules and regulations and be committed to academics being the primary duty in the school. What can be noticed in secondary schools these days are cases of indiscipline such as lateness to school, truancy, disobedience to teachers, beating of junior students, stealing, rape, extortion of money from junior students, wearing of assorted dresses apart from school uniform, smoking, drug abuse, drinking among students (Achimugu, 2005).

Examination Malpractice.

Closely related to the above is the issue of examination malpractice. Admittedly we have had to contend with examination malpractices at all levels of examinations and these have almost called to question our integrity and the worthiness of some of our certificates and diplomas inclusive. No wonder then that the examination malpractice has come to stay in Nigeria permanently. Adamu (2002: 9) commented on the level of educational standard in Nigeria and has this to say:

Nigeria has however reached an educational cross road bedeviled with one crises or the other that demands a change in direction, a change in our understanding and acceptance of what educational standards and quality are. If educational standards are to be meaningful and to serve a useful purpose, they must be judged by the extent to which they fit the real needs and values of our country, it must be viewed in relation to particular purpose, place and time. Many products of secondary schools with good grades in certificate examinations cannot defend these grades when the need arises. This has effects on the tertiary institutions in the country in the society in general.

Education and Politics

Education in Nigeria has been severally politicized to the extent that both the state and federal governments have committed themselves for political reasons to establishing schools, colleges and universities beyond what the country can reasonably sustain compared with the school increasing figures of about 30 years ago. However, despite the remarkable rise in enrolments in primary schools, colleges and universities, the rise does not seem to be keeping pace with the ever growing social demand for education. The gap between the desire for education and the available spaces in the educational system that has widened at all levels; primary school enrolment is less than 50 percent of the total population of eligible school age children. The secondary school system is hardly able to absorb more than 25 percent of those eligible and qualified to enter the next level of educational ladder. For instance, the application received sometimes in 1983/84 by JAMB for admission exercise shows that over 1,911,583 candidates applied for places in the universities while 201,140 applied in 1984/85 session. The figures as stated here under are for both direct entry and joint matriculation examination applications. For at least two years, applications from six states selected from the list in 1984 show the figures as follows:

Imo state - 32,243 (1.5%)

Edo (Bendel) State - 29,800 (14.8%)

Anambra state - 26,729 (13.3%)

Oyo state - 25,789 (12.8%)

Ogun state - 16,628 (8.3%)

Ondo state - 16,500 (8.2%)

Source: JAMB unpublished statistical report 1984.

In all, about 75 percent of the total applications for admission came from only six states of the federation. The increase in the demand for education can be easily related to the causes listed above. The projected enrolment in Nigeria’s three major educational ladder is given as 13.6 million for primary schools, 2.24million for junior secondary schools and 130,000 for universities what has become apparent is that both the state and federal governments appeared to have been taken by surprise by the explosion in demand(Baikie,2002,4).

The crisis in which education sector now finds itself is always traced to the colonial influence. The education introduced by colonial masters was meant to train those who would serve the system and acquire its values. Apparently, development of education in Nigeria was not rooted in any philosophy. If there were any at all, there were not designed to meet Nigerian needs but rather to meet the needs and aspirations or the wishes of the people based far away in Britain.

Low quality intakes and poor academic performance of students

Over the years, complaints about low quality of primary education pupils and outputs in Nigeria abound in literature (Chinelo, 2011; Ige, 2011; Yusuf, 2009; Osho and Osho, 2000). Many people are contending that Nigeria’s primary education can no longer provide the expected literacy and numeracy skill for its clients. Unfortunately, the recruitment of many low quality outputs of primary schools into secondary creates stress for teachers who have to double their effort to teach the students effectively. Reports (Adeyemi and Ige, 2002; Omoregie, 2005), however, confirm the poor quality of secondary schools’ students and outputs in Nigeria, which reflects in increasing failure in examinations, particularly the Senior School Certificate Examinations.

Incidences of wastage

Wastage has been an issue of concern in Nigeria’s educational system. Even though the issue affects the entire system, it is worthy of note that secondary education has over the years been recording its share of it. Unfortunately, at a time when Nigeria is clamouring for education for all its citizens by year 2015, many students are dropping out of secondary schools due to institutional and non-institutional factors (Martinez and Monday, 1998; Adeyemi and Ajayi, 2006; Callaway, 1967; Adesina, 1983) while many are also repeating classes due to failure in internal examinations.

Durosaro, 1985; and Adeyemi, (2012) confirm the prevalence of wastage in secondary education in Nigeria. It is noteworthy that situation where students repeat classes and drop out of schools prematurely constitute waste of the resources of parents and government on the education of the children. When a student repeats class, not only will extra money be spent on their education, the chances of those intending candidates for admission will be blocked. A pupil/student that spends more than the normal years is deemed to have over-utilised resources, both financial, human, and materials.

Dilemma of disarticulation of schools

One of the strategies for implementation of Universal Basic Education (UPE) programme in Nigeria is the disarticulation of secondary schools, which entails the carving out of the three junior classes (JSS 1 to 3) in a secondary school to form a separate and independent school and the remaining senior classes (SS 1 to 3) to form another separate school. Such disarticulation however involves the sharing of the assets and liabilities of the parent school. The inclusion of disarticulation in the implementation strategies of Universal Basic Education (UBE) programme is premised on the belief that if effectively implemented, it will give room for proper focus on Junior Secondary aspect of basic education as well as enhance the achievement of UBE objectives. It is also envisaged that with the JSS forming separate entities, more students can have access to secondary education while more teachers, infrastructures, and facilities can be acquired for teaching of students. There is the belief that if Junior Secondary Schools operate as separate entities, there will be better accountability in the management of resources being committed to UBE while effective monitoring of the situation in the schools will be achieved. At the meeting of National Executive Council of All Nigeria Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS), held at Abeokuta in 2010, it was confirmed that since 2004 when UBE Act became operational, many states were yet to fully comply with the disarticulation directive, few states had fully disarticulated, many states had haphazardly disarticulated, while some states are yet to commence the process. From all indications therefore, the issue of disarticulation is turning to be a carryover of the existing problems in secondary education such as inadequate teachers, infrastructural facilities, fund, and the creation of new ones such as rivalry among teachers and schools’ administrators for positions; redundancy. Many people are contending that the policy is only meant to create vacancies for those aspiring to take up leadership positions in secondary schools while some believe that it will at the end be another investment in futility. As such, many states that had disarticulated their schools are rearticulating them thus implying a return to the status quo and confusion in the implementation of UBE.

Poor Supervision of Schools

Effective instructional delivery and maintenance of standards in the school system are enhanced through regular internal and external supervision. Ayodele (2002) argued that secondary schools are presently supervised by two categories of people namely (i) internal supervision within the school, supervisors as principals, vice principals and the heads of department. (ii) External supervisors outside the school such as, supervisors who are formally designated officials from the inspectorate division of the ministry of education and the area or zonal education offices. The primary responsibility of inspectors is to see that high standards are maintained and that schools are run in accordance with the laid down regulations while it has been argued that the principals have been discharging their duties as internal supervisors, the external supervisors from the ministry of education appear none functional as they seldom visit schools to monitor the operation in these schools. This has invariably hindered effective teaching-learning in schools generally.

Solution To/Moving Secondary Education Forward In Nigeria

In view of the role of secondary education in educational development of a child, it is imperative that the challenges facing it in Nigeria be tackled so that there can be meaningful development at that level of education. To achieve this, the under-listed suggestions are made:

Adequate funding of education, particularly secondary education

In view of the persistent limited allocation to the education, government should increase the allocation to the sector so as to give room for increase in the running grant to secondary schools and ensure the provision of more infrastructure and facilities for the training of students. It is worthy of note that UNESCO has recommended the allocation of 26% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of each country in the world to education. It will not be too much if this standard is attained in Nigeria by government. It needs not be overemphasized that the funding of education is becoming a yoke for government, being the major financier. It thus becomes imperative for private sector including the parents/guardians, companies, NonGovernmental Organizations to contribute to the funding and sustenance of education in Nigeria. Aspects in which the private sector can be involved include the donation of money, provision of services for schools, building of libraries and laboratories for secondary schools. Secondary school’s principals should also mobilize members of the old students of their schools towards donating to the development of their schools.

Effective administration of secondary schools

Secondary schools’ administrators should be more alive to their responsibilities. They should double their efforts at ensuring that there is high-level discipline in their domains. They should supervise the teaching of teachers in schools regularly and ensure that discipline is maintained among the students and teachers. Teachers and students found to have shown dereliction of duties and contravene school rules and regulations should be reprimanded.

Curbing examination malpractices

There is need to arrest the increasing trend in examination malpractice in schools. Secondary schools’ administrators should investigate any reported case (s) of this menace and ensure that those involved are punished to prevent others from indulging in it in future. Teachers should however be committed to teaching so that students can acquire deep knowledge that will enable them pass examination without recourse to malpractice. Government should also enforce the laws against examination malpractice. Those caught in the act should be punished to serve as deterrent to others. Teachers, being role models to students, should also refrain from examination malpractice. Parents also owe it a duty to inculcate high- level moral training on their children so that they can refrain from examination malpractice in schools.

Recruitment and training of additional teachers

In view of the strategic role of teachers in education process and the level of inadequacy in secondary schools in Nigeria, government should recruit additional teachers from the pool of unemployed graduates in the society and distribute them to secondary schools. Government should also enforce that those teachers without the minimum teaching qualification (NCE) should make effort to upgrade their qualification through inservice training. There should also be periodic training of teachers (old and new) in secondary schools through seminars, workshops and conferences, to improve their performance.

Need for commitment and effectiveness of teachers

It is obvious that teachers play significant role in the teaching-learning process in schools. Teachers thus have to be committed to teaching in schools. This can be achieved through prompt attendance to lesson delivery, coverage of syllabus, effective teaching of students among others, to improve the level of academic performance of students both within the school and at the end of their training.

Re-articulation of disarticulated secondary schools

In view of its negative effects which outweigh the positive effects, government should make it a policy to rearticulate the disarticulated schools. Re-articulation of schools should however be complemented with the fortification of schools in terms of the provision of more fund, facilities among others.

Curbing wastage in secondary education

In view of the negative effects of wastage on the educational system, it is imperative for government to curb wastage in the system. To achieve this, Government should initiate advocacy measures for parents and students through print and electronic media, and parents/guardians should be given orientation against premature withdrawal of their children from schools. As far as poverty of parents/guardians is a major factor influencing wastage in Nigeria, government should award scholarships and bursaries to pupils and students of secondary schools, to ameliorate the effect of the poverty of their parents/guardians. Government should also reintroduce education loan for pupils/students to enable poor parents pay the fees and procure needed materials for their children.

Review of secondary education curriculum

Even though government has not relented in its effort to review curriculum of education at all levels in Nigeria, the review of secondary education curriculum is highly imperative in view of the shortcomings inherent in it. Such review should however be a regular process.

Recruitment of quality candidates into secondary schools

In view of the need to improve the quality of students in secondary schools, government should ensure that a thorough admission process that will give priority to merit be put in place in Nigeria. Passing entrance examination should however be complemented by a n interview process which will ensure that only the best candidates are recruited into schools and that the quality of secondary education will improve from its status quo in the country.

Regular and effective inspection of secondary schools

It is not a gainsaying that inspection plays great role in achieving quality education in schools. There is thus the need for attention to be paid to inspection of secondary schools in Nigeria. Ministry of Education and other concerned agencies should continue to organize regular inspection visits to schools and present reports of such inspection.

2.2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

A theoretical framework includes concepts and, accompanied by their definitions and reference to pertinent scholarly literature, existing theories used for a particular study. This demonstrates an understanding of theories and concepts that are relevant to the topic of a research paper and that relate to the broader areas of knowledge being considered (Labaree, 2009). Research conducted around the use of technology in banking has employed the application of several research models and theories to explain factors that lead to adoption of technology. The framework theory supporting the study is System Theory.

The basis of this research can be traced and related to Bertalanffy's (1968) theory, known as System Theory. A system is a collection of parts that work independently or collaboratively to achieve desired results or outcomes based on needs (Ovwigbo, 1991, cited in Musa, I.D. (2015).This implies that a collection of people, resources, concepts and procedures are intended to perform some identifiable function or to achieve a goal.

Furthermore, the system is made up of inputs, transformation processes, and outputs; meanwhile, these are surrounded by an environment. The environment of the system is made up of several elements that are outside the system. In essence, they are not input-output processes, but have an influence on the goals and thus the operation of the system. Figure 1 explains the details.

Fig. 1: System and its Environment

Source: Adopted Ovwigbo (1991) cited in Musa (2014).

System is often analyzed in terms of its efficiency and effectiveness. System effectiveness refers to the extent to which goals are achieved in the school environment as they relate to students' academic performance. Therefore, effectiveness is considered to measure the degree of goal attainment of the schools when compared to students' performance. The system theory considers a school as a social system in which students' advancement depends on the system‘s ability to maintain the relative consistency of its processes and the relationships within and outside the systems. The ability to maintain the relative consistency of its processes and the relationships within and outside the system. The process involves a model of an energetic input-output system with energetic returns. That is to say that the outputs reactivate the system. This is illustrated in figure 2.

Figure 2: Input Output System

Source: Adopted Ovwigbo (1991) cited in Musa (2014).

Figure 2 shows that the inputs into the system are processed within the system and the outputs are obtained. Some of the outputs are sent to the environment, i.e., in the school, while others find their way back to constitute further inputs.

2.4 CHAPTER SUMMARY

In this review the researcher has sampled the opinions and views of several authors and scholars on concept of education, standard of Nigeria education, overview of secondary education. The works of scholars who conducted empirical studies have been reviewed also. In this chapter also, the researcher has been able to review some literature on factors responsible for poor standard of education in Nigeria etc. This chapter is thus fulfilled the conceptual, theoretical and empirical requirements.