Impact of Formal Education on Community Development

Impact of Formal Education on Community Development

CHAPTER ONE

Objective of Study

The general purpose of this study is to find out how formal education can be utilized in achieving community development. The specific objectives are as follows:

To investigate the characteristics of the formal education participants in Udi Local Government
To identify the contributions of formal education in achieving community development.
To determine the strategies formal education can utilize in achieving community development.
To identify the challenges that inhibit formal education in achieving community development.
To examine possible solutions to the challenges.

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

Conceptual framework

Development according to Nyerere (2006) is the expansion of man‟s own consciousness and therefore of his own power over himself, his environment and his society. Also Ofuebe (1992) defined development as a phenomenon in which individual and society interact with their physical, biological and inter-human environment, transforming them for their own betterment and in the process, lesson that are learnt are passed on to future generation to enable them improve their capacity to make further valuable changes.

Development must be dedicated to the improvement of all round well-being of people, but it can only be meaningful when the people for whom the development is meant for appreciate and understand the value of the services rendered. It is, therefore, evident that development is meaningful only when it is sustained. Hence World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) defined sustainable development as the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainable development must involve an all round development of the individual and the society. The International Council for Formal education (ICAE) notes that the essence of sustained and integrated balanced development is to achieve social, economic and political justice that leads to the liberation of mankind and in so doing eradicates such scourges as mass poverty and mass literacy.

People‟s intellect must be brought to bear on development, as such there is need to empower people for development through education.

Without intellectual development, all efforts towards development will be a waste. People must be encouraged to help themselves to develop using their intellect. Education at this point becomes a pre-requisite for development. Education is an instrument with which to change structures and ideologies that keep people subordinate. Through education people can gain access to resources, contribute to decision making, gain control over their lives, gain self respect and improve on their societal values and image.

If education is an instrument for development, formal education which is an aspect of education has the potentiality of contributing to development through the empowerment of individuals politically, socially and economically. Omolewa (1981) and Aderinoye (1997), defined formal education as an organized and sequential learning experience designed to meet the felt needs of the adults. Nzeneri (2007:7) opined that it is in formal education that emphasis is placed on lifelong learning, education as a process and agent of liberation, a tool for adjustment, for self and national development, for cultural awareness and integration, for conscientization and group dynamism. He then defined formal education as “any education given to adults based on their social, political and cultural and economic needs or problems to enable them adjust fully to changes and challenges in their lives and society.” Formal education is an empowerment strategy through which adults can uplift themselves socially and economically to enable them participate fully in the development of their communities.

Formal education is concentrating on programmes and strategies that will help reduce poverty and facilitate development. The role of formal education is to empower people for change and development. This is why the developmental role of formal education according to Nyerere (2006:77) incorporates anything that enlarges man‟s understanding, activates them, helps them to make their own decisions and to implement those decisions for themselves.

CHAPTER THREE

RESEARCH METHOD

Design of the study:

The research design adopted for this study is the descriptive survey design. Descriptive design studies are mainly concerned with describing events as they are without any manipulation (Ali, 1996). This study aims at describing how Formal education is a vector for community development of Enugu State. This will be done without any manipulation of events.

Population of the study:

The population of the study was 827 participants and instructors of Formal education Programmes in Udi Local Government Area. The population is distributed as follows: 779 participants and 48 Instructors.

CHAPTERR FOUR

PRESENTATION OF DATA ANALYSIS

In this chapter, the data collected are analyzed and presented in accordance with the research questions.

Research Question 1: What are the characteristics of Formal education Participants (Respondents)?

CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSSION

Summary of Findings:

The findings of this study on the Effective Utilization of Formal education in Achieving Community development of Enugu State are summarized as follows:

Formal education contributes to Sustainable Development by enabling adults acquire vocational skills that would promote gainful employment, raising trainees‟ general standard of living, making trainees self reliant for sustainable development , helping trainees cope with technological changes for sustainable development and enabling trainees to become productive and useful citizens are the contributions of Formal education Programmes, improving one‟s economic well-being, enjoying activities which people may have either long since laid aside or always wanted to do but were previously unable to do, improving one‟s social well-being and reducing
The identified strategies formal education can use in achieving community development include- to develop courses to improve the personal skills of organizational workers, making financial grants available to individuals to take courses in a subject outside their performance at work, use of media to mount campaign to raise awareness about formal education programme, implementation of relevant and work-oriented curriculum, funding formal education programme adequately and adoption of distance-based learning to facilitate work study constitute the strategies that formal education programme will utilize in achieving community development. Other strategies that agreed to very great extent include: Funding researches for development, coaching, counseling and mentoring and integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in training of participants.

Discussion of findings

The discussion here is based on the Research Questions posed to respondents. It is done under the following sub-headings:

The characteristics of formal education participants

Age Range of Participants

The findings revealed that majority of the respondents fall within the age range of 41-50. Followed by those within the range of 31-40. The next are those between the age range of 51 and above. Few of the respondents are within the age range of 20 and 30. This is not surprising because a greater majority of Formal education participants are the elderly. Those below the age of 30 are not usually interested in Formal education programmes.

Under marital status it was revealed that majority of them are married, while few number of them are single and widows.

Recommendations

In the light of the findings of this study, the researcher has the following recommendations to make:

Government at both the national and state levels should draw policies that will make formal education effective and more so make good provisions for formal education in their budget.
Formal education centres should be built and well equipped with learning facilities to attract participants. This will motivate adults to participate fully in the programme. The use of halls, primary schools, churches as learning centres should be totally
Formal education Centres should be adequately funded by the government to enhance procurement of infrastructures and learning materials and
Non-Governmental Organizations and philanthropists should support government in funding, providing learning and infrastructural needs that will make formal education
Community participation in Formal education programme should be encouraged by the government for Sustainable Development.

Conclusion

In the field of Formal education, there are multiple career options and choices for providing basic knowledge, skills, practices and attitudes that will make people to realize their needs and become conscious of their problems to enhance sustainable development. For instance, formal education provides for people to learn how to achieve individual and community goals. This implies that Formal education is an empowerment strategy through which adults can uplift themselves socially, politically and economically to enable them participate fully in the development of their communities. Formal education as an instrument for development seeks to resolve the pressing problems confronting participants in everyday life in connection with their survival, their economic situation and the quality of their lives. It also seeks to integrate concrete activities in a corresponding framework of medium and long range goals to transform the society. It also helps the popular masses to become social agents capable of exercising their rights as modern citizens.

From this study formal education as an instrument of development and that aspect of education has the potentiality of contributing to development through the empowerment of individuals politically, socially and economically. Formal education as a process and agent of liberation, a tool for adjustment, for self and national development, for cultural awareness and integration, for conscientization and group dynamism has positive implications for sustainable development

REFERENCES

Adiele, E.E. (2006). Planning Strategies for Formal education Programme Development for the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals in Nigeria. Formal education in Nigeria Vol. II. The Journal of the Nigerian National Council for Formal education. Franco Ola Printers, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Aderinoye, R.A. (1997). Literacy Education in Nigeria, Ibadan: University of Ibadan Publishing House.
Akor, V.O. (2008). The Impact of Education in Rural Development. B.Ed. Project (Unpublished). Department of Formal education and Extra Mural Studies, University of Nigeria, Udi.
Ali, A. (1996). Fundamentals of Research in Education. Awka: Meks Publishers.
Asuka, T.T. (2004). Environmental Formal education and Sustainable Development. Journal of Formal education and Development. Vol. II Dickway Press Ltd. Udi.
Booke, J.N. (1953). Economics and Economic Policy. New York: International Secretariate of Pacific Relations.
Bua, S.T., Ogasele, A.T. and Iorlaha, C.D. (2004). Formal education: An Effective Tool for Rural Development. B.Ed Project (Unpublished) Department of Formal education and Extra Mural Studies, University of Nigeria Udi.
Chapman & Aspin (1997). Adult and Continuing Education: It’s Clientele: Internet Source: Http:/www distance .ssyr.edu/iiichi.html. Retrieved 6^th March, 2006. 70.
Chapman & Aspin (1997). The Concept of Lifelong Learning. Internet source Http//www distance.ssyr.edu/iiihi.html. Retrieved 6^th March, 2006.
Chapman et. Al. (2003). Lifelong Learning and Teacher Education. Centre for Lifelong Learning, Faculty of Education, Australia Catholic University.
College of Education and Human Development, Texas. Internet source. Retrieved 12^th May, 2008
Conference on Lifelong Learning, Higher Education and active citizenship 2001). Characteristics Elements of a Lifelong Learning Higher Education Institution: Formal education and Development. Institute for International Cooperation of the German Formal education Association, Thenee, Bonn. No. 56.
Conclusions on Lifelong Learning in the twenty-first century. The Changing Roles of Educational Personnel. Joint Meeting on Lifelong Learning in the Twenty-First century. Geneva, 10-14th April, 2000. http.www.ilo or/Public/English/dialogue/sector/jmep.2000/conclude.Htm.

Related Topics:

Other Topics