Socio-Economic Status, Determinant of Access to Quality Education and Economic Growth in Nigeria

Abstract

In Nigeria, socioeconomic disparities often lead to unequal access to education thereby limiting the potential for upward mobility and contribution to persistent poverty. A survey research design was employed in this work as it’s a design type that affords the researcher the ability to study a very large population in order to discover varied characteristics. Population comprised staff of Delta State University, Abraka, Nigeria. A sample of one hundred and twenty (120) respondents was used in the conduct of this work. Through purposive random sampling technique, academic and non-academic staff was selected from various departments across the institution. A self-designed instrument titled, “SESANDAQEENGNQ” Socio-Economic Status and Determinant of Access to Quality Education for Economic Growth in Nigeria Questionnaire was used to gather data needed in the study. This instrumentwasdividedintothreesub-scalesof20itemsinall.Contentandconstructvaliditywasdetermined by two experts in the department of Educational Foundations, Delta State University. Cronbach alpha reliability was used to determine how reliable items in the scale are with r-value of .863, internal consistency was met. Frequency and percentage analysis was used to analyse bio-data of respondents while Pearson Product Moment Correlation was used for items and hypotheses was testedat0.05levelofsignificance. The study revealed access to educational resources, teacher quality and availability of school facilities and infrastructures determines Quality Education needed for Economic Growth in Nigeria. It then concluded that SES determines the quality of living standard in Nigeria which ultimately impact economic growth. The study recommended that Government should allocate more funds for public education in order to be accessible to all.

Keywords: Socio-Economic Status, Quality Education, Economic Growth, Teacher Quality, Standard