ABSTRACT
Little attention has been paid to literacy assessment in developing countries including Ghana. The objective of the research work was to conduct an assessment of literacy training activities by the Literacy and Development through Partnership (LADP) including assessment of the performance of learners in numeracy, reading and writing, the application of literacy skills in the lives of adult learners and the facilitation method used by the LADP. The study was basically a case that employed quantitative research design. It sampled four literacy classes or communities out six literacy classes at the writing stage where numeracy and reading has already been taught and writing underway. Convenient sampling was used to select the four literacy classes but learners were selected using simple random sampling with the lottery method. Data was collected using test questions, focus group discussion and interviews and analyzed using means and standard deviations, and themes and patterns. The assessment of literacy training activities of the Literacy and Development through Partnership showed that learners performed well in both in reading and numeracy but performed below average in writing. In the Gbulahagu community learners performed better in numeracy with a mean of 23.40 and Standard deviation (SD) value of (7.356), followed by reading mean of (21.87) and SD (5.489) and then writing mean (17.73) and SD (4.464). In the Dimabu community learners performed better in numeracy with a mean of (28.07) and an SD of (1.486), followed by reading mean (28.07) and SD of (3.416) and then writing mean of (17.40) and an SD of (5.489). In the Kunkulung community learners performed better in reading with a mean of (22.00) and an SD of (7.00), followed by writing with a mean of
15.33 and an SD of 4.923 then numeracy with a mean of (15.27) and an SD of (4.877). In the Nysherigu community learners performed better in reading with a mean of (26.27), and an SD of (2.086) followed by numeracy with a mean of (19.93) and then writing mean (12.27) and an SD of (3.494). In terms of cross case comparisms in literacy skills performance, the following were discovered. In terms of numeracy performance, the Dimabu community performed better with a mean of (28.07) and SD of (1.486), followed by Gbulahagu with a mean of (23.40) and an SD of (7.356), Nysherigu, a mean of (19.93) and an SD of (4.667) and Kunkulung, a mean of (15.27) and an SD of (4.667). In terms of reading performance, the Nysherigu community performed better than all the other communities with a mean of (26.27), and an SD of (2.086) followed by Dimabu with a mean of (25.33) and an SD of (3.416), Kunkulung, a mean of (22.00) and an SD of (7.00) and Gbulahagu, a mean of (21.87) and an SD of (5.489). In terms of writing performance, the Gbulahagu community performed better with a mean of (17.73) and an SD of (4.464), followed by Dimabu, a mean of (17.40) and an SD of (5.489), Kunkulung, a mean of (15.33) and an SD of 4.923 and Nysherigu, a mean of (12.27) and an SD of (3.494) in that order. In terms of overall performance in literacy skills assessment, learners performed better in reading skills with a mean of (95.84) and an SD of (17.991), followed by numeracy skills with a mean value of (85.97) and an SD of (18.386) then writing skills assessment with a mean of (62.73) and a standard deviation of (18.37). The assessment also showed that learners regardless of the social context of the literacy program could transfer the skills of literacy in their personal and daily lives. The method of facilitation used by facilitators in the literacy program is the Gudshinsky method of facilitation which facilitators had difficulties teaching the writing component of the method. This could be partly the cause of their weak performance in writing. It is recommended that more emphasis should be put in teaching learners writing skills and provide in more materials that will enable learners practice writing in order to improve on program delivery and performance.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
           Background of the study
Universal literacy is fundamental to social and economic progress. Literacy is a fundamental right and a springboard not only for achieving Education for All (EFA), but also for eradicating poverty and broadening participation in society. It is also a vehicle to support the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and to empower the poor in particular, in terms of economic, political and social benefits. Literacy among agriculturalist may contribute to increase in production; literate parents tend to have smaller families (reducing high rate of population growth with its stress on development) while literacy creates awareness in people which enable them to see the need for change and development (UNESCO 2008). UNESCO (2008) further notes that literacy strengthens the response of people to economic and other incentives.
Literacy is a basic right. This right is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Although many countries in Sub Sahara Africa are signatories to the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human and right to education of adults, few countries have been able to build robust, adult education institutions that offer genuine second chances to the majority of illiterate adults. As a result, countries with a legacy of low access to school have so far been unable to eradicate illiteracy among youth and adults (UNESCO EFA Global Monitoring Report, 2013).
Literacy is relevant to poverty alleviation efforts worldwide, because in the twenty-first century much of the information needed to make decisions and improve one’s economic, personal, family, or political conditions is presented in written form. People must be able to decipher a script code quickly, understand the contents of the documents, and decide upon options
transmitted in them (Abadzi, 2003). Furthermore since 2000 the two goals (Goals 3 and 4) of the EFA which also forms the basis for goals 2 and 3 of Millennium Development goals have drawn the attention to the critical role that literacy plays in human development and in poverty reduction.
Unfortunately the numbers of illiterate population the world over continue to pose significant challenges. The UNESCO fact sheet (2013) on adult literacy reports that globally adult illiterate populations constitute about 773.5 million; males constitute 88.6% and females 79.9%. The Department for International Development (DFID) on their adult literacy briefing for (2008) asserts that there are about 774 million adults who cannot read and write, 64% women. To DFID‟s estimation there would be about 725 million adults who cannot read and write by the year 2015 (DFID, 2008).
The lowest literacy rates are found in sub- Saharan Africa and in South and West Asia (UNESCO Institute for Statistics Fact Sheet, 2012). In addition records show that adult literacy rates are below 50% in some African countries such as Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and The Gambia (UNESCO Institute for Statistics, 2012).
In Ghana literacy rates are normally provided by the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) periodically with a few provided by other Non Governmental Organizations (NGO‟s) concerned with literacy. According to the 2000 Population and Housing Census (PHC) report 54.1% were literate (Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), 2002). The 2003 Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaires (CWIQ) placed the adult literacy rate of Ghana at 53.4% from 48.5% in 1997. In addition the Ghana Living Standard Survey (GLSS) report of the third round indicate that about
49% percent of adults were literate (GLSS, 2005). The GLSS report of the 5th round revealed that 51% of adults were literate (GLSS 2008). Furthermore the 2010 population and housing census place the adult literacy rate at 74.1%. The Ghana living standard Survey (GLSS) report of the 6th round places the literacy rate at 56.3% (GLSS, 2014).
There are also regional disparities in literacy rate in Ghana. The 2003 Core Welfare Indicators Questionnaires (CWIQ) place the literacy rate of Accra at 77.6%, Ashanti 60.5%, Brong Ahafo 44.6%, Northern 22.6%, Upper East 23.0%, Upper West 24.4%, and Eastern 56.6%. The 2010 population and housing census on the other hand place the adult literacy rate for Accra at 89.3%, Ashanti 82.6%, Brong Ahafo 69.8%, Northern 37.2%, Upper East 47.5%, Upper West 53.3%, and Eastern 81.0%. By this data on literacy rates, it shows that the three Northern Regions have the lowest literacy rates with the Northern Region being the lowest.
One way by which government of Ghana is committed to increasing literacy rate is through the Non formal Education division (NFED) of the Ministry of Education. The NFED of the Ministry of Education is responsible for coordinating literacy activities in the country and direct implementation of the National Functional Literacy Programme (NFLP). The nation-wide program aims at reducing the number of illiterate adults in the country and equipping participants with developmental information and functional skills in the domains of life skills, occupational skill, civic awareness and health. The program‟s development objective is to increase the number of functionally literate adults‟ especially rural poor and women. The Non Formal Education Division (NFED) is being run in all the 10 regions of the country. Offices in the regions and the districts are manned by coordinators. Each district is divided into zones manned by zonal supervisors. These supervisors directly oversee literacy activities and the work of volunteer facilitators in communities under their jurisdiction.
The NFED has instituted a 60/40 recruitment policy in which the three northern regions are given 60% quota as against 40% for the southern sector regions. Over the years, literacy classes have been established in all districts in the region in the approved local languages. Currently, Batch 17 literacy classes are on the ground 7th March 2014). Because of the low levels of literacy rates in the Northern Region, there has been on the ground a number of Non Governmental Organizations (NGO‟s) providing literacy in the region to compliment the effort of the NFED.
The literacy and Development through Partnership (LADP) was established in 1985 and has its headquarters in Tamale but operates in the surrounding districts including Tolon, Karaga, Gushegu (LADP, 2007). These localities or areas have one of the lowest literacy rates not only within the region but the country at large. The core welfare indicators questionnaires for 2003 conducted by the GSS indicate that Gushegu/Karaga has a literacy rate of 9.3% and Tamale 46.4%. The rest of the districts in the region have less than 30% of their population being literate. The 2010 population and housing census on the other hand indicate that Tolon has 26.2% of its population being literate; Karaga has 21.9% literate, Gushegu 20.3% literate hence the operation of the NGO in Tolon.
The objective of the LADP is basically to teach adults how to read and write and to become functionally literate. The LADP has four levels in its literacy education and training. These are the basic, advanced, oral and the written stage (LADP, 2012).
The basic stage involves the teaching of the local language through the use of the alphabets. For writing, the participants learn to able to write words and sentences, their own names and signatures (LADP 2012). When the primers have been thoroughly taught and learned, a test is
devised to test the participants on their level of literacy. If successful, a certificate is given at a Literacy Day organized at the individual project level.
At the advanced stage the LADP 2012 indicates that students are encouraged to read more fluently in the local language and be more competent in their writing of the local language. Between 8 and 10 books all in the local language are covered in this stage. This consist of folk stories, functional books on health, agriculture, environmental issues, citizenship, scripture related books plus actual parts of the New Testament in the local language. Students are taught how to write letters and stories in the local language. A test is given at the completion of the stage and a certificate at the next Literacy Day (LADP 2007).
Learners at the oral stage are taught how to speak English and are given the rudiments of English grammatical structure, bridging from the local language to the English Language via an English bridge primer (LADP 2012). The emphasis is on speaking the language so that quantities of illustrations are used in the bridge primer with explanations in the local language. The grammatical structure of English is taught in a simple progression throughout the bridge by use of the kinds of questions, sentences and drills used. Although this is an English stage, the students are encouraged to continue to read and write in the local language. More Scripture is introduced, and also a test has to be passed so that the next stage can be started.
At the English writing stage adults are basically thought how to write and communicate in the English language by the use of the English writing primer.
NFED (2007) cited in Bedie (2012) observe that even though there are proliferation of NGO‟s and private commercial providers who are supporting the efforts of NFED and literacy training in Ghana, sustainability of learning outcomes remains a big challenge where Ghanaian adults
learners are able to achieve highly in reading, whilst weaker achievement are recorded in numeracy and writing respectively. Bedie (2012) submits further that, this brings to fore questions about application of literacy skills for the intended purposes, investment made and sustainability of literacy skills especially in some parts of the North. He acknowledges again that the absence of policy framework within the field of literacy training and education organizations live clients with doubtful outcomes including numeracy, reading and writing and application of literacy skills for the intended purpose.
