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- Rural Nomadic Fulbe Boys' Primary Schooling: Assessing Repertoires of Practice in Nigeria
Abstract:
In recent years, educational policies for boys have not been given
as much attention as those for girls in most countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Rural Nigerian nomadic boys are especially disadvantaged, considering their
livelihood is based on a pastoral economy that demands constant migration
to interior grasslands in search of pasture. For a more inclusive approach, the
federal government of Nigeria promulgated and implemented the Nomadic
Educational Policy (NEP). Despite these accommodations, existing school
practices affect the boys’ access, attendance, and completion of primary
schools.
The article elucidates how and why Fulbe nomadic boys are still “left behind”
at the primary education level despite specific educational policy developments.
This discussion is based on analyzed data and past qualitative study with the
boys, and re-situates the nomadic boys’ schooling experiences within some
selected learning theories (Bandura, 1977; Maslow, 1971) and discussions of
boys’ learning (Epstein, 1998; Gilbert & Gilbert, 1998). The paper concludes
with suggestions for policy makers, teachers, and parents to minimize the
challenges affecting boys in primary schools.