Status of the Implementation of Child Rights Laws in the Education of Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Rivers State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examined the status of the implementation of Child Rights Laws in the education of Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Rivers State, Nigeria. Two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. A descriptive research design was adopted. The population comprised all the 322 principals in the 322 public junior secondary schools in Rivers State. Out of these 322 principals, 217 are males while 105 are females. A sample of 200 principals (120 males and 80 females), representing 62% of the population was drawn using both the simple random sampling and stratified random sampling techniques. The instrument that was used for data collection was a validated self-designed 17-item questionnaire entitled: “Implementation of Child Rights Laws in the Education of Orphans and Vulnerable Children Questionnaire (ICRLEOVCQ),” and it was structured after the four-point modified Likert rating scale. The internal consistency of the instrument was determined using Cronbach’s Alpha. Reliability coefficients of 0.69 and 0.82 were obtained respectively for the various sections of the instrument, which showed that the instrument was reliable. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer the research questions while z-test was used in testing the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings of the study revealed, among others, that Child Rights Laws are being implemented in the education of Orphans and Vulnerable Children in junior secondary schools in Rivers State at a high extent. Based on the findings, it was recommended, among others, that school administrators should ensure that children learn in a friendly environment that is devoid of threats, bullying, corporal punishments, child labour, child abuse among others in order to make schooling a worthwhile experience for every child.