Assessing the Implementation of Out-of-School Children's Curriculum in Cross River State: A Pathway to National Development
Keywords:
Implementation, Out of School, Curriculum, National Development, Cross River StateAbstract
The study investigated the implementation of the Out-of-School Children (OSC) curriculum in Cross River State: A pathway to national development. Two specific objectives guided the study. Two null hypotheses were formulated in line with the study's specific objectives. A descriptive survey research design was employed in the study. The population consisted 14,124 school dropouts involved in OSC programmes in Cross River State. A sample size of 201 school dropouts in Calabar Metropolis, Cross River State was selected using stratified random sampling technique. The research instrument used in the study was a questionnaire termed "Out-of-School Curriculum Questionnaire" (OSCQ). To assess the instrument's reliability, the questionnaire was pilot-tested using Cronbach's alpha. The instrument's average reliability estimate is .83. The collected data were analysed using independent t-tests and simple linear regression. The findings revealed that there is a significant difference in the implementation of the Out-of-School Children curriculum across different local government areas in Cross River State. Also, it was observed that there is no significant relationship between the implementation of the OSC curriculum and national development indicators (e.g., literacy rate, skill acquisition, poverty reduction) in Cross River State. The researcher therefore concluded that the implementation of the Out-of-School Children (OSC) curriculum varies significantly across local government areas in Cross River State. The study also established a substantial relationship between effective OSC curriculum implementation and key national development indicators such as literacy improvement, skill acquisition, and poverty reduction in the state. Based on the results, the study recommended, among other things, that the government of Cross River State provide adequate funding and resources to support the effective implementation of the Out-of-School Children curriculum.Downloads
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