TABLE OF CONTENTS
SEPTEMBER 2008 ............................................................................................................. i
DECLARATION ................................................................................................................. i
APPROVAL ....................................................................................................................... ii
ACKJ'1OWLEDGMENT .................................................................................................... iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................... iv
LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................. vi
LIST OF MA TRICES ....................................................................................................... vii
ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... viii
CHAPTER ONE ................................................................................................................. l
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. l
1.1 BackgroW1d ................................................................................................................... 1
1.2 Statement of the problem .............................................................................................. 4
1.3 Purpose .......................................................................................................................... 4
1.4 Objectives ..................................................................................................................... 4
1.5 Research Questions ....................................................................................................... 4
1.6 Scope ............................................................................................................................. 5
1.7 Significance ................................................................................................................... 5
CHAPTER TWO ................................................................................................................ 6
LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................................... 6
2.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 6
2.1 An overview of Recent Studies on the 'Street Children Phenomenon .......................... 6
2.2 The School Dropouts and the Street Children Phenomenon ........................................ 7
2.3 The Nature of school ..................................................................................................... 8
2.4 The cause and Paradox of"Streetism" ........................................................................ 10
2.5 Identity and Magnitude of Street Children ................................................................. 11
CHAPTER THREE .......................................................................................................... 13
METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................................... 13
3.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 13
3.1 Research Design .......................................................................................................... 13
3.2 Population ................................................................................................................... 13
Table 1: some details about the target population ............................................................ 15
3 .3 Sampling ..................................................................................................................... 15
3 .4 Selection of Sample (Informants) ............................................................................... 16
Table 2. The sample and its main characteristics ............................................................. 17
3.5 Instruments .................................................................................................................. 17
3 .6 Validity of instrnments ............................................................................................... 18
3.6.1 Reliability of Instruments ........................................................................................ 18
3. 7 Procedure of data collection ........................................................................................ 18
3.8 Data Analysis .............................................................................................................. 19
3.9 Problems and Limitations Encountered during the Study .......................................... 20
CHAPTER FOUR ............................................................................................................. 22
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA ........................ 22
4.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 22_
4.1 Results from Interviews ............................................................................................ ., Z2;
IV
DISCUSSION. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .................................. 40
5.0 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 40
5 .1 Discussion of results ................................................................................................... 40
5.2 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 46
APPENDICES .................................................................................................................. 48
APPENDIXA .................................................................................................................... 48
BUDGET .......................................................................................................................... 48
APPENDIX B ................................................................................................................... 49
TIMEFRAME ................................................................................................................... 49
APPENDIX C: .................................................................................................................. 50
INSTUMENTS ................................................................................................................. 50
ABSTRACT
The study found out that: 1. Most street children had dropped out of rural, mixed, day; government aided Primary schools largely located in Central Region. 2. Most of the schools identified were characterized by overwhelming Inadequacies in school infrastructure, scholastic materials and requirements. 3. Circumstances and conditions conducive to the process of dropping of School operated mainly in the home rather than in the school. The School, however, played some role. 4. Various subgroups were evidently observed among street children. The research concluded that: 1) Most street children had mainly dropped out from rural primary schools in Central region. 2) . The schools identified were the type that could not attract or retain children. 3) The process of dropping out of school usually started at home" but was enhanced by impoverished schools. 4) Street children were stratified along age, sex, education, ethnicity Parentage status and so on. I. The study recommended that Government programmes and effort to fight "strictest" should be directed to primary schools 'where the dropout rate is high. 2. Government must address disparities between particularly, in core districts. 3. Government should devise ways and means of rescuing and per urban home otherwise equitable benefits from UPE will remain but a dream to many children. 4. As are the programmes about the education of the girl child, government Should introduce special incentives to attract and retain all children at school. These could include milk, free uniform and so on. Finally the study made several suggestions for further research.