| Africa is the mother of civilization. It is the center and | | | | necessary facilities needed in our quest for educating |
| origin of modern technology, but today Africa has | | | | our teeming children, it is not the only factor, or even |
| been at the back and far behind in development. | | | | the most basic one. Below are some other factors |
| Poverty is a major problem of African development, | | | | that militate against the African child education. |
| because money has a very important role to play. | | | | 1. Facilities -- Inadequacy of learning facilities pose a |
| Education is an all-round process by which an | | | | great threat to child education. Lack of classrooms, |
| individual's mental and physical faculties are | | | | laboratories, workshops, libraries, instructional |
| developed, making him aware of the circumstances in | | | | materials, and other buildings at all levels can hamper |
| which he lives and from awareness, enable him to | | | | child education. Besides, lack of maintenance of |
| make the most out of those circumstances. In | | | | existing facilities also contributes to the problem of |
| whichever way one acquires education, it is not free | | | | child education in Africa. |
| or cheap - money is involved. | | | | 2. Workers -- Shortage of teachers and other school |
| Poverty has created a wide gap such that illiteracy is | | | | workers, more especially trained ones, that can |
| preferred by people, and it is succeeding in caging the | | | | handle major works as their need arises. Core |
| African child to be incapable of many things. Poverty | | | | subjects like Physical Sciences, Languages, Technical |
| has caused many people today to heard their | | | | and Vocational, need qualified teachers that can |
| children, especially the males, into trades rather than | | | | handle them, but in most schools they are lacked. In |
| send them to school. Some parents also prefer to | | | | some places where you have the teachers, they are |
| send their children to farm and the female children | | | | abandoned to work in unfriendly environments by |
| into marriages because they see these as more | | | | their employers, making their jobs so difficult that |
| beneficial than the education they may acquire. | | | | they are forced to leave teaching for greener |
| An educated person is expected to acquire such skills | | | | pastures in private and public services, because for |
| as literacy and numeracy and abilities to pursue | | | | them, the educational commodity is not providing |
| various vocations using his hands. He is also expected | | | | them satisfactory rewards and no one desires to be |
| to be useful to himself and to his society and to | | | | a teacher today. Educating the African child becomes |
| particularly contribute positively to the growth of that | | | | a waste of time and resources when the schools |
| society. | | | | lack qualified teachers and workers. |
| With the current trend of formal school system, the | | | | 3. Discipline -- With the serious disciplinary problems in |
| number of African children that are out of school is | | | | all facets of our educational system, achieving a |
| alarming. The few rich among us have seized the | | | | quality education for the African child is a mirage. |
| system to be their status symbol, and where they | | | | Absenteeism, strikes, crimes of riotings, examination |
| sense a challenge from a simple help, private schools | | | | malpractices, and even murders, affect children |
| become the most preferred thereby subjecting public | | | | education in Africa. In most cases, the teachers lack |
| schools to perpetual decay. | | | | the needed motivation, and as such deny their |
| The bulk of the African child population falls within the | | | | employers their total commitment to duty, displaying |
| ages of 0 and 22 years. As a matter of fact, the | | | | low morale to the jobs. In fact, all the stakeholders |
| child has to move from pre-school age through the | | | | are guilty of disciplinary problems - teachers, |
| various levels of the formal educational system until | | | | students, educational planners and administrators. |
| he completes the first level of his tertiary education. | | | | 4. Administration -- Constant changes in policy |
| By the time he completes his first level of tertiary | | | | formulation and execution has occasionally been cited |
| education, the person has developed into a full grown | | | | as one of the problems in education today. The |
| adult and it will thus not be appropriate to refer to | | | | continuity and stability of the African child in |
| him as a child anymore. | | | | education is grossly affected. |
| In Nigeria, for example, the government has made | | | | 5. Economy -- The present economic situation is |
| different moves to bring about balance and empower | | | | imposing upon many parents heavy financial burdens |
| the children through mass literacy, yet the effort has | | | | in the course of educating their children. |
| yielded no fruit. However, the imbalance in the | | | | 6. Parental And Communal Responsibilities -- Parents |
| development of the country's educational system | | | | and other members of the community have as a |
| between the northern and the southern parts, | | | | matter of cause, shirked their responsibilities towards |
| contribute a considerable debate in Nigerian | | | | the education of their wards. With this types of ugly |
| educational system. While one part of the | | | | development, educating the African child will continue |
| geographical constituents believes that education is | | | | to be a burden and an impossible task. |
| needful and could go any length to train up their | | | | However, there is hope in view if the government |
| children, the other part depends solely and heavily on | | | | will come to the rescue. However, our attitudes |
| the government for their children's education, thus | | | | towards education need to change, so that we all will |
| compounding the chances of educating the children | | | | see it in its basic objective of preparing the mind for |
| as expected. | | | | responsible citizenship. With this, educating the African |
| Although, funding is a crucial factor in providing the | | | | child will not only be possible, but a huge success. |