CURRENT ISSUES IN EDUCATIONAL MANAGEMENT IN NIGERIA

Edited by N. A. Nwagwu E. T. Ehiametalor M. A. Ogunu Mon Nwadiani

A publication of the Nigerian Association for Educational Administration and Planning

TABLE OF CONTENTS Preface and Acknowledgement .xi xn SECTION 1: MANAGEMENT OF A FREE COMPULSORY SCHOOL SYSTEM 1 Chapter 1: Educational Management in Nigeria. ... ..2-12 Prof. A. B. Fafunwa Chapter 2: Management of Free and Compulsory Education in Nigeria: Issues and Problems. ............ 13-23 Dr. M. S. Onwueme Effective Management Strategies for a Free and Compulsory School System in Kwara State. 24-37 Dr. (Mrs.) A. T. Alabi Effective Management of Schools for Compulsory Education. .. ... ... Dr. Michael U. C. Ejieh 38-47

Chapter 3:

Chapter 4:

Chapter 5:

Management Demand of Universal Basic Education Programme.. ... ... 48-59 Dr. (Mrs.) R. O. Olubor and Dr. S. Unyimadu Planning and Managing Universal Basic Education (UBE) at the Primary School Level in Cross River State........ 60-70 Dr. Usang U. Bassey and Mrs. Ijeoma A. Archibong Investigating Factors Influencing Primary School Pupils' Learning Achievement in Imo State... 71-90 Assoc. Prof. I. L Anukam

Chapter 6:

Chapter 7:

iii

SECTION 2:

HUMAN RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT AND MANAGEMENT 91

Chapter 8:

Training and Utilization of Educational Administrators and Planners in Nigeria... 92-101 Dr. R. A. Alani Conflict Dimension in Higher Education Personnel Management... .. 103-113 Dr. C. I. Imhabekhai Staff Development for Improved School Management...........................................114-123 Dr. A. OgunJele Nigerian Universities and the Development of Human Resources............................124-137 Dr. A. Y. Abdulkareem Time Utilization and Goal Setting: A challenge to Human Resource Development...... 138 - 148 Dr. (Mrs.) C. J. Ifedili Curriculum Planning and Manpower Development..............................................149-162 Dr. Jide (hvolabi
Business Education: How well is it meeting Challenges of Human Resources Development in Nigeria?........................................ 163 174 Dr. L. E. EkpenyongandJ. Nwabuisi Issues in Incentive Administration for Effective Workforce Retention: A Study of Some Primary School Teachers in Aguata......... 175188 Dr. Virgy Onyene

Chapter 9:

Chapter 10:

Chapter 11:

Chapter 12:

Chapter 13:

Chapter 14:

Chapter 15:

iv

SECTION 3:

PROVISION AND MANAGEMENT OF EDUCATION FINANCE 189

Chapter 16:

Financial Planning for State Secondary Schools: A Strategy for Qualitative Secondary Education in Nigeria............................................ 190-201 Dr. G. C. Nduka Towards Effective Fiscal Resources Management System in the Nigerian Secondary Schools: Some Guidelines............ 202-210 Dr. (Mrs.) A. N. Okorie Enrolment Projection and Cost Implication of Universal Basic Education in Nigeria...... 211 - 229 Dr. J. K. Adeyemi and V. O Igbineweka Provision and Management of Education Finance in Nigeria...... ... ... 230-251 Dr. P. O. Okunamiri
SUPERVISION, STANDARDS AND QUALITY CONTROL 252

Chapter 17:

Chapter 18:

Chapter 19:

SECTION 4:

Chapter 20:

Supervision, Evaluation and Quality Control in Education......... . ...... 253-269 Prof. S. O. Igwe
Problems of School Inspection in Nigeria... 270 - 281 Dr. M. A. Ogunu Supervision as an Instrument for Maintaining Standards and Quality Control in UBE... 282 - 294 Dr. (Mrs.) C. N. Ojogwu From Quality Control to Quality Assurance: A Panacea for Quality Education in Nigerian Schools.................................................. 295-303 Dr. (Mrs.) Yetunde Ijaiya.

Chapter 21: Chapter 22:

Chapter 23:

SECTION 5: FACILITIES PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT Chapter 24:

304

School Facilities: Management Practice In Nigena................................................ 305-319 Prof. E. T. Ehiametalor Maintenance of Secondary School Facilities in Midwestern Nigeria... .. ... 320-331 Dr. (Mrs.) B. O. Ogonor and Mrs. G. A. Sanni Facilities and University Development... 332 - 343 Mrs. R. O. Osagie RELATED ISSUES 344

Chapter 25:

Chapter 26: SECTION 6: Chapter 27:

Computer - Based MIS and the 21s1 Century University Administration in Nigeria... 345-358 Dr. (Mrs.) Uche Emctarom Computer in Educational Planning and Administration. ... ... ... Dr. V. O. 'Ibadin 359-364

Chapter 28:

Chapter 29:

Motivation and Teacher Classroom Evaluation and Management in Edo State...... ... 365-376 Dr. (Mrs.) F. I. Ofocgbu The Role of Educational Administrators in the Promotion of In-service Teacher Education for Primary School Teachers in Nigeria... 377 - 396 Dr. E. D. Nakpodia Strategies for Resolving Ethical Problems in School Administration... ... 397 Dr. M. E. Ijcoma vi 413

Chapter 30:

Chapter 31:

Chapter 32:

Strategies for Improving the Quality of Education in Nigerian Universities...... 414 - 423 Dr. (Mrs.) V. O. Ochuba Challenges of Educating Nigerian Youths for the 21st Century...... ... ... 424-431 Prof. Aloy Ejiogu

Chapter 33:

vii

Chapter 23
From Quality Control to Quality Assurance: A Panacea for Quality Education in Nigerian Schools
By Dr. (Mrs.) Yetunde Ijaiya University of Ilorin Introduction The worth of any educational system as an investment lies in its capability to continuously serve its customers (students, parents, employers or labour, the society) better and remain relevant. Educational planners are therefore faced with two main challenges: providing for quantity and for quality. Quantity is concerned with numbers, that is, getting as many citizens as possible to school within the shortest time allowed while quality is about how good or bad the products are and answers the question: What manner of education? Of the two, quantity is easier to deliver than quality. If universal free education is backed up with adequate resources (teachers and teaching facilities), school enrolment is guaranteed to increase. How to ensure quality education is the aspect that presents educational managers the most challenging task. It is in the aspect of quantitative growth that educational planners even in Nigeria can lay claim to some success though a lot is still required to be done. In the process however, quality seems to have suffered with all the attendance consequences. Yet 295

without quality, education becomes a wastage and even poses danger to the individual beneficiary and the society. The quality of education being provided for children has been a source of grave concern for a long time. Critics have said that the education was too bookish and irrelevant to African needs during the colonial period and even after independence in 1960. The 1969 Curriculum Conference which culminated in the National Policy on Education and the 6-3-3-4 system of education was a reaction to that fact, i The school curriculum was expected to be comprehensive to cater for varying talents of children. Yet, complaints about the low quality of education has continued. In recent time, more concerned people, state] governors, government officials have come out openly to admit and lament] the rot in the educational system. For instance, Jacob (2001, p. 11) expressed concern about the declining level of literacy in Igala land which I can be traced to "teaching employment given to unqualified applicants and admissions given to some unqualified candidates. Olayemi (2001, p. 11) also observed that "the depreciation that has endangered public schools is undoubtedly the major cause that led to the emergence of private schools". He however noted that private schools! need to be closely monitored to stem the abuse which is now common! among them. Apart from such comments, other indicators of declining quality and wastage in the education system include high drop-out and! failure rates, rampant examination malpractices, poor reading and writing skills among students at all levels. Evidence of wastage abounds among] the teeming population of students who repeat General Certificate Examination (G.C.E) and Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) Examination every year. There is also evidence of client reaction as many parents take their children to private schools within or outside the count for those who can afford to. In recent years, the trend in many countries has been towards restructuring of school management. Decentralization has 296

received morel attention as a means of reducing wastage and ensuring greater quality, that is, quality control is exchanged for quality assurance (West - Burnham, 1994). The focus of this paper is on how qualitative education can be guaranteed in Nigerian schools. It will therefore examine the concept of quality and quality control and highlight quality control practices. It will also identify factors that stifle quality in Nigerian schools, and suggest the adoption of Total Quality in the educational system. It will also make recommendations for effective practice of Total Quality Management. Quality and Quality Control Quality is perceived differently by various professionals who often use the term. While, for instance, an accountant sees the quality of a product in terms of cost-effectiveness, a customer is likely to judge it on the basis of its reliability. However, quality is something everyone considers good and wants to have (Cole, 1996). Quality has to do with whether something is good or bad; it is about the standard of something when compared with other things. It therefore pre-supposes that there is a standard set. In manufacturing industries, standard or quality of products can be assessed against an original product or against customers specifications. Quality control is therefore directed at determining the extent to which a product meets that standard. Cole (1996, p. 232) defines quality control as "basically a system for setting standards and taking appropriate action to deal with deviations outside permitted tolerances". Quality control is a retroactive action used to determine the quality of a product or a system after processing and during which wastages would have occurred and what is left is to reject and/or battle with rectification. It is however, better, more rewarding and less costly to take steps to prevent failure and wastage before they happen. Hence the need for quality assurance which is preventive rather than corrective. 297

Quality Assurance or Quality Control Quality control practices in Nigerian education is based essentially i school inspection, monitoring and control. While such measures appropriate for obtaining data on policy implementation and for strategic planning, and aid public accountability, they are of little value when comes to managing classroom learning processes (West - Burnt 1994). Also, while the provision and rehabilitation of school facilities assist in the delivery of quality, some intervention is needed to plan utilize such facilities effectively in the teaching/learning process. School inspection has been criticized for its inadequacy to assist classroom teachers to improve their performance (Tuoyo, 1999). West Burnham (1994) also sees inspection as an external imposition which prone to rejection by teachers. This is more so when inspectors behave like tin-gods (Ijaiya, 1991). School inspection is particularly criticized its limitations as a postmortem examination of certain school activities, searches for lapses and wastages rather than preventing them and the seeks rectification which is often more costly (West - Burnham, 1994) terms of time, money and energy to the student, government, teachers : parents. Neither the parents nor the pupils expect failure. Most child come to school with hope and enthusiasm to learn but somewhere ale the process, many fail even though teachers are teaching. Failure therefore, suggests that there is a dissonance between what the teachers teach and the needs of the learners. Inspectors on visits to the school may not be able to handle this problem successfully without the schools' input Schools are therefore in the best position to attack such a problem being in constant touch with their own students. How schools can best do this the main concern of this paper. The worth of any management is based on its ability to produce quality products and satisfy clients and other stake holders. Its tasks, therefore, include identifying and solving any problem that militates against quality delivery. Such a problem 298

solving approach will be directed at taking preventive measures against wastage. Prevention is therefore the basis of Quality Assurance Management or Total Quality (West -Burnham, 1994). In the attempt to provide quality education, there are pertinent questions to be raised such as: who should ensure quality? Who should be held accountable? And with what consequences? The issue of educational accountability has not been addressed in Nigeria for obvious reasons. In the U.S.A for instance, principals have been "dismissed or re-assigned due to low student achievement" (Reaves, 2001, p. 21). In Nigeria, such school heads stay put. Lack of public demand for accountability from head teachers and teachers is a strong factor for declining quality in the system. Neither promotion nor transfer is linked to pupil achievement. The lack of clearly defined quality standard and how to assess it even makes it easier for teachers to feel unaccountable for quality. However, the Government is not, at present, in a strong option to demand full accountability from Nigerian teachers or take such a stem measure against them as in the U.S.A where education is much better funded and enjoys stability. Nigerian teachers work under difficult and unstable conditions such as inadequate teaching facilities, irregular and inadequate remunerations, under-funding of education and strikes. It should be noted that quality delivery begins from policy makers to resource providers, policy implements and students; that is, it is the responsibility of all stake holders. Both the input and the processing contribute to the quality of the products. The need to enhance productivity and minimise wastage has led to a new but "broader, organisation-wide approach to quality" away from the traditional view of quality control to quality assurance (Cole, 1996, p. 237) which has been variously termed Quality Management (QM), Total Quality (TQ), Total Quality Management (TQM) (West - Burnham, 1992; Cole, 1996; Bush and Coleman, 200). 299

Total Quality works to ensure that every aspect of the organisation and every employee is focused all the time in meeting and then exceeding customer requirements (West - Burnham, 1994, p. 172). Cole (1996) sees it as approach that is based on a positive attitude to quality at every level in the organisation. Cole (1996) noted that TQ has its genesis in the work of Professor Ishikawa, who while training supervisors on quality process came to the realization that workers' participation in the quality process can ensure the achievement of quality standard, provide feedback to supervisors and managers about quality problems and secure workers commitment to quality. When workers form part of the total quality production process, quality assurance becomes participative collaborative (Cole, 1996). Others whose works also had profound influence on TQ are W. Edwards Deming and Jooseph Juran (Cole, 1996), both of who developed statistical process control in post war Japanese industries. Their work showed that it was possible to attain continuous high standard at affordable prices to the customers when attention is paid to continuous improvement of production process and when workers' commitment to quality production is secured. Cole (1996) showed that 85% of failures in production is traceable to management and this is because management often becomes complacent with failure, assuming that current performance is the best possible. Jurans position is that managers should be forward looking and address underlying causes of problems rather than indulge in curing the symptoms. However, it is not all aspects or absolutes of TQ as put forward by its proponents that can be applied to education. For instance, the absolute of 'zero defects' in setting standard in industries is most unrealistic in education (West Burnham, 1995). Three important lessons from TQ however, stand out as relevant to quality assurance in education, c.nphasis on prevention of wastage, involvement of students, teachers, head teachers, 300

inspectors and parents in the quality process, securing the right attitude and commitment of all concerned to quality so that quality becomes the concern of all the sundry. TQM can be an internal arrangement by each school to prevent wastage rather than rectify it. It recognizes the autonomy of the school to handle its own affairs. The main features of TQM according to Cole (1996, p. 242) include, prevention of errors rather than detection and correction, right first time as the motto, total commitment by management to TQM policy, meeting requirements/quality as defined by the customers, each employee is a customer to every other employee, quality implies continuous improvement, review and measure performance, including all quality processes as well as the delivery of the final product or service and quality is everyone's responsibility (including suppliers). School-based total quality management should put in place as preventive measures against failure and wastage. Efforts would be made to identify learners' needs, problems would be identified and underlying causes addressed. The idea of quality assurance is however not totally strange to Nigerian schools. Most private schools have already started some form of TQM. In fact, the good ones among them have demonstrated sensitivity for quality assurance through their teaching, extra lessons, parental involvement etc. The philosophy behind TQM is however to develop the culture of continuous improvement through employees; collaborative efforts for the satisfaction of customers' (students, parents, teachers and community) needs. Each teacher will be a client to the next teacher by ensuring that he passes on to the next class at least near perfect pupils both in academic performance and behaviour. School based quality assurance will therefore be a continuously built school-wide culture of progressive programme involving all staff, students and parents in the effort to produce well balanced, high quality pupils from year to year and all weak points along the line will "be 301

collectively identified and dealt with before any damage is done. A weak point in one class or at one level is the concern of all. There is every expectation that TQM will become a reliable process for improving school quality in Nigeria in the future. For effective TQM schools have to be given more free hand through gradual decentralization of school management and adequate funding. Conclusion The desire for better quality of education is a generally shared feeling in Nigeria as in many other countries. Though quality production is the responsibility all of stakeholders, the schools, in particular, play key role in the quality process. The traditional practices of quality control through school inspection, auditing and monitoring are mere retroactive actions taken after possible damage had been done. Total Quality is suggested as a better alternative for quality assurance because it focuses on wastage prevention rather than corrective. The goal of TQ is to develop a culture of total commitment to quality process in the school so that wastage is prevented before it occurs. The motto is right first time.

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References Bush, T. and Coleman, M. (2000). Leadership and Strategic Management in Education. Leicester: University of Leicester. EDMU. Cole, G. A. (1996). Management Theory and Practice. London: DP Publications. Ijaiya, N.Y.S. (1991). A guide to supervision of Instruction. Ilorin: My Grace Graphics Repro. Co. Jacobs, S. (2001). Trend of illiteracy in Igalaland: The Comet. Thursday, October 11, 2001, p. 11. Olayeni, A. (2001). Closure of Private Schools. Nigerian Tribune. Thursday, October 11, 2001, p. 11. Reeves, D.B. (2001). Crusade in the Classroom. New York: Simon & Schister. Tuoyo, M.U. (1999). Inspection and Supervision as Practice of Quality Control in the School System. In J.O. Fadipe & E.E. Oluchukwu (eds). Educational Planning and Administration in Nigeria in the 21th Century. Ondo: National Institute for Educational Planning and Administration West - Burnham, J. (1992). Managing Quality in Schools. Harlow: Longman. West - Burnham, J. (1994). Inspection, evaluation and quality assurance. In T. Bush and J. West - Burnham (eds). The Principles of Educational Management, pp. 157- 176. Harlow: Longman. West - Burnham, J. (1995). Total Quality Management in Education. Leicester, University of Leicester EDMU.

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