Spring 2018

Educational resources are important in the development of education. In Nigeria, Western education was commenced by the Christian Missionaries (that is by private efforts). However, the quality of education was criticized by the elites and the nationalists to the extent that the government subsequently got elaborately involved in the provision of Western education. This research examines the educational resources in the development of private schools, particularly in private secondary school education in Ekiti State, Nigeria, from 1999 to 2016. A Historical research method was employed because the study is historical in nature. It was found that: the quantity and quality of teachers in the private secondary schools were fairly adequate; the material resources and performance of students in external examinations were fairly adequate. It was concluded that the educational resources enhanced fairly good quality of education and educational development. It was recommended that the resources be sustained and improved upon.

This manuscript examines the historical development of private secondary school education in Nigeria (1859 – present). In the process, it examines the growth of private secondary school education with reference to the quantity of resources since 1859, and then the quality of the education. A Historical research method was employed because the study is historical in nature. It was found that private secondary school education in Nigeria was started by the Christian missionaries; the local communities subsequently established private secondary schools too. The government later established public schools.  It is concluded that the policy of free secondary education (junior secondary education) by the government should be implemented in such a way that would prevent industrial actions by teachers. Moreover, it is recommended that the free education policy should apply not only to junior secondary school education but also to senior secondary school education.

A review of the literature indicates that public school districts, especially those in rural areas, are heavily dependent upon a traditional salary schedule. This may have prevented these districts from leveraging incentives to retain high-performing teachers. This study examines the effects of strategic teacher compensation on teacher quality as determined by the Tennessee Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS). An independent-sample t test was used to evaluate the differences in TVAAS single-year individual teacher index results between teachers who voluntarily elected to participate in the district’s new strategic compensation plan as compared to teachers who elected to remain compensated by the traditional salary schedule. The study found statistically significant higher TVAAS single-year individual teacher index results of strategic compensation plan participants as compared to non-participants who remained compensated by the traditional salary schedule.

This article seeks to fill the gap in the service-learning literature on the impact of service-learning on community partners by examining community partners’ views on service-learning and addressing some of the problematic issues they face throughout their interactions with the university. This includes working with the university to ensure a collaborative and mutually beneficial relationship, scheduling of students engaged in service-learning, and institutional capacity for training students in new tasks and skills to benefit the organization and the community it serves.

Vocational and Technical Education (VTE) plays a vital role in national development, such that many great nations make it an essential part of their policies and invest in its curriculum. Its role in national development warrants the need to conduct studies on it. Thus this study is on comparative analysis of vocational and technical education at the senior secondary school level in Nigeria and Ghana. Integrated research method was employed in the study involving Historical, Scientific and Comparative methods. It was found that the philosophy and objectives of VTE at the senior secondary school level are good in Nigeria and Ghana; implementation of the curriculum content is better in Ghana than in Nigeria; administration and funding of VTE are better in Ghana than in Nigeria. It was concluded that there is need for improvement of VTE more in Nigeria than Ghana and recommendations are made in that regard.