1st Edition
Reimagining Nigeria's Educational System Improving Academic Performance Through High Stakes Standardized Testing
This book assesses the challenges within the Nigerian educational system and provides a concrete plan to revitalize the low-performing system by strengthening high-stakes testing at all levels.
In Nigeria, many citizens believe that the solution to the country’s low performance in education is to eliminate high-stakes standardized testing. High-stakes testing refers to applying standardized student achievement tests as a primary mechanism to evaluate students, teachers, and their school’s performance. This book argues that the poor quality of education and low ranking of Nigeria’s educational system is not related to the negative consequences of high-stakes testing, but rather is due to many intrinsic factors. By conducting a comparative analysis of six high-performing education systems worldwide, the book offers a comparative summative evaluation of the educational system and offers recommendations.
This book will be of interest to policymakers and scholars in the fields of African education, higher education, quality and global studies, African studies, management and administration, leadership, and professional development studies.
Joseph Abiodun Balogun is former Dean and retired Distinguished University Professor at the College of Health Sciences, Chicago State University, USA, Visiting Professor/Program Consultant at the Centre of Excellence in Reproductive Health Innovation, University of Benin, Nigeria, and President/ CEO, Joseph Rehabilitation Center, Tinley Park, Illinois, USA.
1. Introduction 2. Primer on Nigeria 3. Nigeria’s Educational System: An Overview 4. The Organizational Structure and Leadership of the Federal Ministry of Education 5. The Current State of Nigeria’s Educational System 6. The Fundamentals of Standardized Testing 7. Lessons for Nigeria from Six High-Performing Educational Systems 8. Thematic Evaluation of the Publications on the Impacts of COVID-19 on Nigeria’s Educational System Between January 2020 and June 2022 9. Summative Evaluation and Recommendations
Biography
Joseph A. Balogun is former Dean and retired Distinguished University Professor at the College of Health Sciences, Chicago State University, USA, and Visiting Professor/Program Consultant at the Centre of Excellence in Reproductive Health Innovation, University of Benin, Nigeria.
"This book presents a detailed assessment of the Nigerian education system and how it currently compares with Africa, and indeed the rest of the world. It then suggests ways that high stakes standardized testing, especially at the kindergarten, secondary school, and profession levels, can be improved as objective tools for assessing individuals at these levels. It would have been interesting to include in this book a discussion of the reasons for the exceptional performance of many Nigerian students who currently attend public schools despite the challenges that exists. “Reimagining Nigeria's Educational System: Improving Academic Performance Through High Stakes Standardized Testing” is a good read for academics, education experts, policymakers, government officials, and indeed all stakeholders in the education sector."
Akhere A. Omonkhua, African Journal of Reproductive Health June 2024; 28 (6):126
