Physical Facilities and Municipal Utilities Availability in Private Primary Schools in Southeast Nigeria
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Abstract
There are a lot of private elementary schools in Southeast Nigeria, and their overall enrollment numbers are comparable to those of pupils enrolled in public primary schools. Before private schools can receive government approval and a license to operate, they must first fulfill basic requirements on quality issues. In order to guarantee that pupils receive a top-notch education at this critical foundational stage of their academic and psychological development, they are also routinely observed to guarantee that school quality is upheld. In an era where fundamental education is free and required in public primary schools, there are several reports of private primary schools manipulating quality assurance requirements fraudulently to obtain permission to operate. After that, the schools launch aggressive marketing campaigns to entice pupils from public schools. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess two aspects of educational quality in Southeast Nigerian private primary schools: the availability of physical facilities and utilities. The study was led by two null hypotheses and two research questions. The study used a sample of 120 private primary schools, 90 of which were located in metropolitan areas and 30 of which were located in rural areas, out of a total population of 5111 schools. Observational checklist developed by the researchers served as the instrument for gathering data. The study involved direct observation in three sample states in the Southeast, which included private primary schools. The data were examined using Chi Square statistics, frequency count, and percentage. Overall, it was discovered that private elementary schools have sufficient physical infrastructure and amenities. Physical facilities like labs, workshops, and libraries are absent from them. When it comes to availability and sufficiency, urban private primary schools almost always have better physical facilities and municipal utilities than rural ones. The findings of the X2 test showed that compared to private primary schools in rural areas, a much higher percentage of urban private primary schools had infrastructure and municipal utilities. It was suggested that in order to raise the standard of basic education that pupils receive in these private schools, these institutions should build libraries, science labs, and technical workshops.