COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ADULT LITERACY PROGRAMMES IN GHANA AND NIGERIA

Abstract

This study investigated the comparative study of the implementation of adult literacy programmes in Ghana and Nigeria. A descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. Five research questions were posed for the study. Five research hypotheses were also posed for the study. Using the random sampling technique a total of 300 instructors were used for the study. A structural questionnaire was used for data collection. The reliability coefficient of 0.86, 0.85, 0.87, 0.90 and 0.92 with a grand mean of 0.97 were obtained using cronbach alpha method of determining internal consistency of the instrument while one expert in Adult Education, one in measurement and evaluation and one expert in comparative and international education carried out face validation of the instrument. Five research questions were answered using mean and standard deviation while the five hypotheses which guided the study were tested at 0.05 level of significance using the t-test statistics. It was found that the planning of adult literacy programme is slightly higher in Nigeria than in Ghana, that physical resources employed in the implementation of adult literacy programme is higher in Nigeria than in Ghana, that there is more financing of  adult literacy programme in Ghana than in Nigeria, that the involvement of human resources in the implementation of adult literacy programme is higher or greater in Nigeria than in Ghana and that the level of political-will is higher in Nigeria than in Ghana. It was however recommended that the planning subsystem should be intensified, more physical resources should be utilized, financing should be increased, provision of capacity building should be encouraged and government political-will should be intensified.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

The history of reading and writing could be traced to ancient Egyptians who discovered the art of writing. This art of writing spread to other parts of the world. Today, it has become part of man’s civilization. In this present era of globalization, literacy is the key to progress. The ability to read, write and do computation makes one a modern man in the sense that he can communicate.

This ability to communicate in any language makes a person to be regarded as being literate. In many countries of the world, many people miss formal education at the early stage of their lives. The category of those who cannot read, write and compute is regarded as the state of being illiterate. An illiterate according to Ezema (2008) is “the state of lack of skills of reading, writing and arithmetic” (p.2). Therefore, it means that anybody who cannot read, write and do computation in any language is regarded as being a stark illiterate.

Illiteracy, ill-health and powerlessness make individuals passive observers even in issues that concern them (Obi, 2006:5). Obi  (2006) went further to point out that the emphasizes on basic education for children and functional literacy for adults is based on, the fact that education and training are the major means of self development and empowerment” (p.3). Louis (1968) in Obi (2006) states that “education is the single most vital force in combating poverty, powerlessness, abuse of human rights, dictatorship as well as the degradation of the environment” (p.3).

Basic education which has literacy and numeracy as core components is a fundamental right of every individual. Literacy and numeracy skills are essential in any strategy for poverty reduction as these skills help the poor to extricate themselves from the conditions that cause poverty (Lauglo, 2009:4). Furthermore, literacy is a vital starting point in the long process of education and training. Hence Article 26 of Universal Declaration of Rights 1948 stipulates that education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality.

Literacy for adults should not be sought after, just to enable them acquire certificates for paid jobs. It should be acquired so that the adults become fully developed, empowered and active citizens (Obi, 2006:10). Literacy for adults should be pursued for its intrinsic value. Lack of literacy and numeracy skills by adults constitutes for them barriers to entrepreneurship and market transactions.

The word literacy overlaps with the field of adult education. Literacy is defined as the ability to read and write in any language with understanding and comprehension. Literacy is also about the acquisition and use of reading, writing and numeracy skills, and thereby the development of active citizenship, improved health and livelihoods, and gender equality (Aitchison & Alidou, 2009). The adult literacy rate for Nigeria is 71.6% and 79.3% for Ghana as at the year 2010.

Literacy programs have been conducted in Ghana and Nigeria based on twelve international adult literacy benchmarks. These benchmarks are the use of reading, writing and numeracy skills, a ratio of at least one facilitator to thirty learners and one trainer/supervisor to fifteen learner groups, active choice about the language in which they learn, use of a wide range of participatory methods, governments responsibility of a wide variety of materials suitable for new readers, and 3% of annual total budget of the countries for literacy programmes and 3% of their national educational sector budgets to adult literacy programmes.

One of the main aims of UNESCO is ensuring that everyone in the world has free access to education and must be able to read and write especially in the language of his or her environment. This study is premised on the fact that the rate of adult illiteracy is still very high despite the efforts of UNESCO and the federal governments of Ghana and Nigeria. UNESCO has, since 1946, started adult literacy programmes which specifically focused on the development of adult education and adult literacy as influenced and inspired by the historican contexts of each country (Hinzen, 2000).

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