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INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Education is a profitable instrument in the advancement of individual and national goals. Adamachi and Romaine (2000), stated that education is regarded as the bedrock, which takes a nation to a great height. Nigeria as a nation seems to have realized the gains inherent in the provision of quality education for her citizens, to effect changes in the national development hence the occasional changes in her educational polices and programmes as situation demands. This situation led to involvement of individuals, co-operate bodies and communities to participate in the provision of facilities for the implementation of universal basic education (UBE). (FRN, 2004).
There was also the Universal Primary Education of the Eastern region. The national Congress of Nigeria and Cameron (NCNC) controlled government of the East made this proposal. However, the crisis that erupted in the NCNC in 1953 brought in some major changes with Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe as the new head of government. The Federal Government therefore, planned the Universal Primary Education and launched it in February 1957. This scheme was short-lived because of some problems ranging from finance, staff to infrastructural facilities (Ogbonnaya 2000).
The Federal Government of Nigeria therefore, under the leadership of Lt. General Olusegun Obasanjo as the Head of State on September 6, 1976 launched the Universal Primary Education scheme. This was supported by all the states with an enrolment of about 8.2 million primary school children (Ogbonnaya 2005). A number of factors like lack of classrooms, insufficient fund for payment of teachers’ salaries among others led to the collapse of the scheme.
It is as a result of communities absence in the implementation of these various polices that led to its collapse hence the coming of Universal Basic Education. This UBE programme in Nigeria stretches from the six years primary education up to the three years junior secondary education. Thus, accounting for nine years continuous schooling for the 40 percent youth population of 15 years and bellow (Ajayi, 2004). The other dimension of the UBE is the non-formal perspective which is in line with the implementation blueprint of the UBE (FRN, 1999:3). This is referred as to “non-formal skills and apprenticeship training for adolescents and youths who have not had the benefit of formal education.”
The UBE therefore as an educational programme appears to be socially all-inclusive as it offers educational opportunities for in school and out-of-school population. This programme was launched by General
Olusegun Obasanjo, the then president of Nigeria on 30th September 1999 at Sokoto, the capital of Sokoto state of Nigeria. The Enugu state UBE bill was signed into law in September 2005 by the immediate past governor Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani.
However with the emergence of new modes of lives following technical changes in communication and living patterns in towns and cites, a modified form of residential communities have emerged. This type of community is refered to as adopted communities. This is the where group of people live in the same place and share common interest but do not necessarily have historical link. The adopted communities are found in urban areas while the traditional communities are found in rural areas.
The community involvement practices in the implementation of Universal Basic Education include their participation in the sourcing of funds for the erection of classroom blocks, laboratories and libraries. At present, communities has been discovered to be employing community teachers in such subject areas where teacher are lacking like: English language, Mathematics Introductory Technology among others.
A leader on the other hand is an individual in a group given the task of directing and coordinating tasks relevant in the group activities. Community leadership is the ability of some persons to get others to carry out his will
without the use of force or threat or the ability carry people along in pursuance of common goal.
In the words of Eya (2004) community leaders are those members of the community that are characterized by a concern for organizing the community as a whole and for themselves. Leadership in the community ranges from the Chairman, secretary and members of the town union down to philanthropic individuals. Community leadership involves also the exercise of powers and authority, influence and participation in decision making.
In view of this assertion therefore, the school-community relation is a serious planned activities through which the school seeks to learn about the community, and interpret the purpose, programme and needs of the school and involve the community in planning and evaluating the progress and the policies of the school. This however, may lead to the establishment of many school by different communities.
The school on the other hand is an institution for educating the child formerly. The school exists for the community and the community for the school. This shows that without the community, there will be no school. Education makes the community because the worth of a nation depends on the quality of its educational system. The main purpose of the school is
therefore to educate the child so that he can be a useful member of the community. The child is the bridge between the school and the community because he belongs to both.
Okoro (1999) has pointed out that increased students achievement seem to be associated with increased community involvement in the provision of land and errection of administrative and classroom blocks. Supporting the above assertion, Akpuche (2000) asserted that, if there exist differences between urban and rural community involvement in the school administration, it may raise the question as to whether school location will influence community involvement practices for the implementation of Universal Basic Education.
Prior to the Nigeria civil war between 1967 to 1970, the schools were maintained and managed by the voluntary agencies, majorly the missionaries. Immediately after the war in 1970, the Federal military took over the ownership of the school both secondary and primary. This made the communities not to participate in the finding of education. It was as a result of embezzlement of fund by some school heads, that is the principals and headmaster that created in the minds of the community not to contribute to the running of schools.
Grants that were coming from agencies and other organizations like the United Nations International childrens’ Emergency Fund (UNICEF), United Nation Scientific and cultural organization (UNESCO) also to the community’s withdrawal in contributing to education. When these grants and helps were no longer coming, the education industry started to suffer some sit backs.
Now that the Universal Basic Education programme in introduced, the community sees and started to believe that the schools now are their own as the education is for all. They now come back to see what they can do contribute to education by being involved or participating in facilitating the implementation of the programme through different way like provision of school buildings, land, library & laboratory, sporting equipment among others.
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