Education is a key indicator of socio-economic and socio-cultural development. As documented by the Education for All (EFA) Global Monitoring Report in 2002, development in education improves productivity, health, and empowerment, and reduces negative social phenomena such as child labour. This correlation was the driving force behind global efforts to provide all children basic education, as embodied by the Millennium Development Goals which additionally sought to close the gender gap in school enrollment. However, progress has been patchy, and hopes that a focus on primary education would provide a solid foundation that would translate into increased and more equitable secondary school enrollment have proven limited. Addressing this transition to secondary schooling is the next major task, but research examining the variations in perceptions of both male and female students with regard to the socio-economic and socio-cultural variables underpinning secondary educational achievement has been lacking.
To address this knowledge gap, this study was conducted to examine the extent to which the perceptions of both male and female students in Nigerian secondary schools differ. A validated questionnaire was administered to 504 respondents in 12 secondary educational institutions, two from each of the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria. The questionnaire explored how the students viewed their socio-economic and socio-cultural contexts, and how they impact or empower them with regard to enrolling and completing secondary education.
Overall, the opinions of male and female students were not significantly different, with the issue of gender differences almost equally perceived by both male and female students so long as those factors affected their educational achievement. Both agreed that socio-economic factors can hinder secondary educational achievement, especially poverty, in that it prohibits parents from affording basic materials, tuition fees, transport, etc. Socio-cultural factors were not reported by students to hinder secondary education however, contrary to findings that show early and forced marriage, and cultural and religious beliefs, act as a hindrance. Based on the findings, the author recommends that parents be economically empowered so that they can meet the economic needs of their children, academically. To this end, school fees should be free to all levels of secondary education, while free learning materials given to students will help to reduce the direct and indirect costs of secondary education.