Personal and Environmental Path Predictors of Girl Child Retention in Lagos State Schools, Nigeria

This study is a path tracer analysis of personal and environmental predictors of the girl-child educational enrolment and retention in schools. The tracer analytical survey is based on the ongoing debate on how the Nigerian society through its educational provision is making efforts at achieving the 8-point agenda of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for sustainable development. The survey which comprised 200 participants from purposively selected low-income households in Lagos State employed a validated and reliable instrument in the collection of data. Data were analyzed using the chi-square (X2) and correlation analysis at 0.05 alpha level. Results revealed among others, that poor financial status, school location and cultural practices inhibited the girl-child educational enrolment and retention. Also, the findings revealed that, the monthly income of parents, type of occupation and parents' educational qualification influenced the educational enrolment and retention of the girl-child in Lagos State. Keywords: Girl-Child Education; Personal and Environmental Predictors.International Journal of Educational Research Vol. 4 (1) 2008: pp. 127-13

Challenges of Women Participation in Continuing Higher Education Programme: Implications for Adult Women Counselling and Education

This paper investigated the challenges or constraints of women in continuing higher education programme with particular focus on the B.Ed part-time programme of the University of Lagos. A simple survey research design was employed to explore the issue. A 15 item questionnaire supplemented with oral interview sessions provided the data used for the study. The study involved 150 randomly selected women in B.Ed part-time programme of the University of Lagos. The sample was drawn from across three Departments in the Faculty. The data collected were analyzed using mean score, frequency count and simple percentages. The findings of the study showed that the major constraints or challenges of women participants in the programme include time constraints, increasing marital demand, poor economic or financial base, poor learning environment, lack of encouragement from employers and spouse, increasing social pressure and poor psychological disposition. The implications of study for women’s counselling and education were highlighted. Based on the findings, recommendations were also proffered.Keywords: Challenges, Women’s participation, Continuing higher education, Implication, Counselling and Education