Society, schools and progress in Nigeria

Geoforum

98

The nine sheet map of Ward 9, when assem-

Edmund

bled, measures ca. 1.50 m. wide by 1.85 m.

reprinted

long and is produced mately

:

1

2,700.

at a scale of approxi-

The map sheets are each

KING

says in a general introduction

in all of the books that this will

facilitate

easy cross-reference

volume to another.

portant

stage of development

tion of nationhood

from one

was thecrea-

and of course education

plays a significant

As well as for educa-

role. When America

took an international

responsibility

tionalists this series is designed for students

new definition

of civilization

of sociology,

The education

system is decentralized

for sheet overlaps, to provide a comprehensive

this is shown by the title used - Society,

birdseye view of the district.

Schools and Progress,

oblique

units with a legend, but they

representations

The use of

of street frontages

and government

Nigel GRANT’s

and politics;

..

of mankind

coupled with a rich legend should provide

munist countries

potential

adds much to our understanding

users, many of whom may be

unfamiliar

with a map, with an understand-

able vista of their own portion However,

of Toronto.

with no scale presented

on the map

development

came under the control forms of government.

knows his street pattern

governments

to find the location estimate

by name, his ability

of a desired facility

or

its distance from him are both

inhibited. Applied termed

urban research of this type has been “store-front

geography”

by caustic

colleagues, but one should remember store fronts are neighbourhoods people than are university this type of positive,

that

to more

campuses. Out of

people’s geography

there may well develop

instrumentailities

suitable for use in constructive

urban rene-

wal.

monolithic

system, especially

parisons. Questions

of decentralization

experiments

are important

M. NEWCOMB,

Aarhus

on

interpretations.

and

GRANT

but asks whether

J. J. (1971):

Society,

Schools

communist

policy or merely examples of progress to be found in any

Oxford:

Pergamon

GRANT,

Press Ltd. E 2.00.

N. (1969):

Society,

Progress in Eastern Europe. Pergamon

E. J. (1965):

to local religious Iearnings. There conflict

between

and in the South the problem

section on how

best known quotations

American

critics of the system point to the

anti-intellectuation

One of Marx’s

curriculum.

KING

about “American

University

in

if they per-

overseas. KING America

believes that the glories of system are historic.

in shaping human nature.

Room is left, of

Schools and Perga-

education

has, in the past, been

inadequately

serviced in terms of the litera-

are clearly documented

quent chapters. perience,

these in subse-

Much of the Soviet ex-

and recognise the emptiness

relatively 1962,

by people like Anton

who worked

with waifs made

the breakup

of the West Indies Federation.

We tend to regard them as being part of the

homeless by the Civil War, have found a

underdeveloped

permanent

and economically

of educa-

tion in a wide range of societies and cultures.

The details of school organization

Apart from the above titles other areas

important

covered in the series are England, Tanzania,

reforms designed to suit both political

tempt

Israel, Australia

and national

studies, an at-

made between

is made to have a common

theme and

purpose and a uniform

pattern;

begins with a historical

and institutional

background, influences

each volume

then they proceed to describe

administration,

the school system, family

and background

than the content

social forces.

are less

and the numerous needs

desires. Useful contrasts are countries

like Albania

and

Yugoslavia. Edmund

States of America

volume on the United makes an interesting

trast to the above. Here is a country ancient traditions personality

provision.

world,

of European

Education

find new expressions.

just being part of this.

Little specialist literature ed, especially

material

has been develop-

which could be useful

for those taking teaching qualifications

in

the areas covered by the books. is very brave in attempting

to cover as wide an area as the West Indies, con-

where

liberty

not just industrially

but also in terms of social

John FIGUEROA

KING’s

Nigeria in

the West Indies at varying dates since

under review provide the basis for a systematic appraisal of the development

and

become members of the

states of the world.

ture available for advanced study. The books

place.

tone of her basic

deal with areas which have,

recently,

the years after 1917, Makarenko

to transform

The volumes by John FIGUEROA

independent

theories of education,

of ab-

States, we simply re-

turn to the universalistic

is based on the trial and error policies of with the result that

KING

Declarations.”

L. J. LEWIS

and as a result Eastern Europe’s,

When will

come to terms with big-business

the role of the United

Comparative

Canada,

in that body’s work

stains: “We do not attempt

160 pp. Oxford:

individual

indeed moderate

but

course, for various interpretations,

Extremists

work for UNESCO,

work

policy,

was very clear about man’s productive

but

despite the official

any blue prints for educational

Society,

School”

still hound experts as “communists”

the American

have only inter-

and

schools” each with dif-

the old legend of “freedom”?

mon Press Ltd. f 1 .OO.

and India. Unlike

in methods

reminds us that we must

sons have little interest

is inscribed over the

of the Humboldt

variations

China, Scandinavia,

in colleges and fears of

monoliths

Perga-

schools

of segregation

and race hatred has yet to be solved.

preted the world in various ways, but the

Schools and

is constant

state and parochial

real task is to change it”; Marx never laid

1.40.

Progress in Nigeria.

of religious community, hire teachers according

Schools and

Society,

L. J. (1965):

assumptions

local communities

263 pp. Oxford:

Progress in the USA. 241 pp. Oxford: mon Press Ltd. E

The school system is secular but it operates on.the

ferent characteristics

society.

East Berlin: “Philosophers

Press Ltd. f 1.75.

of a free

view that the system is universal.

is an interesting

entrance

and the rhetoric

talk not about “the American

educational

Marxists view education. FIGUEROA,

in social pro-

with the technical

progressive developments

the successes are the result of deliberate

and Progress in the West Indies. 200 pp.

and inadequacy

achievements

the

in leading to de-

finds much to admire and still more to

There

LEWIS,

com-

mands for various kinds of adjustments indeed dissonant

of

in

as the countries

for educational

developing

KING,

characters

which are important

of

world.

levels of development

evaluate sympathetically Robert

and poli-

to many outsiders as a

survey are at different

search

the consciousness

vision contrast strangely

investiga-

He discovers diversity

what has appeared

of inequality

of their present

tions go deep into the national these countries.

ambitions

continually

upsurge of black power,

Since all of these

insist that education

Americans

their actions, but the war in Vietnam,

in these areas

tics cannot be devided GRANT’s

since the eyes of the world are

for some purpose, some justification

of the

since World War II, when most of them

and with no grid system, unless the local user

but

to the needs

focussed on her achievements, and failures.

of Eastern Europe and

of education

was required.

must provide responses central

volume considers the Com-

later

then a

all may be easily assembled, with allowances

self-sufficient

14173

and

One im-

not only in terms of distance (1 100 miles between Trinidad

and Jamaica) but also in

terms of the different backgrounds

-

French,

historical

and cultural

British, Dutch,

Geoforum

14/73

99

Spanish, with recent American The difficulty introduction

influence.

family

of this he recognises in his and first chapter,

some formal

education

at a state

level may have been in operation.

and in a

Enzyklopadie.

This

period always seems to be neglected,

which

pleasing table on page 30 which depicts the

is a pity because it is important

ownership

we regard Africa

and its attempts

It brings forward

the question of who were

century.

of the islands from the 17th Although

basic education

may be

the same the dispersed nature of each school system makes them unique.

He has a deep

well, not least through in the preparation reference

the care he has taken

of statistics and tables

excellant

introduction

to the area; chapter

2 deals with the economic

ly, especially

in him

to society general-

in a developing

Kingdom,

in secondary

the colonial

colonial

have become

education,

of the system being based on

as an important

programme.

and

part of the

tion should be the right of all people, not

educational

only for itself but because of its influence

develop as Nigeria wants to these are essential

over the participation

to provide those people who will run the

of people in govern-

voziert. Man steht einer aufserordentlichen herausfinden,

dag namentlich

griil3eren Artikel

des Lexikonteils

die einfuhrenden

Kapitel

nent oder Erdteil

(im Falle Europas)

wiegend hervorragende darstellen

For a country

to

Ubergreifen-

miihsam erfassen, wenn ilberhaupt.

mutlich

gelungen sein.

Sprache dar, zudem lither

stellen z. Z. die ver. geographische

fur diesen Erdteil

lich aktuellen

mit zum Teil erstaun-

Daten und wiederum

Bebilderung.

mern, erfreulich,

Amiisant Quellen

durchschim-

da6 man den Umfang

form of “parliamentary

fenbar nicht mit der statistischen

ficult task especially

messen hat.

-

as the former

colonies

did not always make a smooth changeover

An instruktiven

system present in the West Indies, then the

possible (note the Belgian Congo).

und Tabellen

education

assumes a dif-

think

when we consider

his more “academic”

put into practice,

along with the two-party

of the populace

ferent kind of importance general priorities” statement

(p. 150).

A very laudible

in this particular

context.

Professor LEWIS

impression

role of religion and the churches might have

education

an excellant

school system on the different

book and adds to an interesting

islands.

Gleichwohl

sieht

mit wachsender

Zuversicht

entgegen.

and rule which we are led to beWolf TIETZE,

lieve. Despite this it is still a very useful

of the

ungenutzt.

Unternehmens

Kingdom

been emphasized,

but otherwise

Karten

man dem Abschlul3 dieses umfangreichen

did not necessarily provide the benevolant

little book, with good comparisons

Beigaben - Termini,

- sind die BSnde wieder reich,

grationschancen

gives the

were. The United

of-

Elle ge-

aber such dabei blieben leider groge Inte-

makes this point,

approach

that things were better than

they actually

The

I don’t

vorziig-

ist, wie hier

change over from colonial rule. It is a dif-

and

En-

in deutscher

economy,

democracy”

Dies

bei den einfuhrenden

vollstandigste

zyklopadie

iiber-

Zusammenfassungen

lassen sich dagegen nur

und da die benutzten

etc. whilst there is a

zu jedem Konti-

- fur sich genommen.

Europa-Kapiteln

die

wie such

ment and the running of the state in the “once universal suffrage is accepted

industry,

Lektiire

Material

Doch wird man bei niherer

Die drei Europa-Bande

which is a very restrictive

the need to put literacy

adult education

area. Educa-

of this is the way of

nicht unbedingt,

weil es nicht mehr pro-

diirfte am wenigsten

French colonies still use the

French curriculum, one. Secondly,

Das befriedigt

de Zusammenhange

with

administration.

A more classic example the former

and

which culminates

trying to relate education

of the former

1970.

chapters are 3 to 6 in-

clusive which covers aims, priorities Education

entrenched adminstration

and social com-

plex of the West Indies up to about The most significant teacher

an index would have

the way the traditions

which is an

which

than many

this. Two points emerge - firstly,

power, the United outline

Projekt fort.

aber es versiihnt,

fiille gegeniiber.

volumes, although improved

point. 1 is a historical

to develop.

the “barbarians”?

makes it easier to read through

which can provide a very quick and useful Chapter

in the way

The book is very clear and systematic

feeling for the area which comes over very

Und unter diesem - veran-

derten - Titel fiihrt nun der Verlag das

Wolfsburg

series of

books. L. j. LEWIS’s

volume on Nigeria brings a

more “academic” of education

approach

to the subject

M. McGUlNNESS

and tries to provide a wide

analysis, which was needed. Africa

and M. WILL,

Middlesbrough

provides

one of the fastest changing parts of the world, especially

economic

which a good educational New techniques,

development

to compete

with inon an equal

Nigeria will need the trained

Meyers Kontinente

person-

nel to carry this out. The book was first published

in 1965 so we

Europa

Band 4: Nordamerika;

I, A-F;

have no study of the effects of the Biafran

Band 7: Europa

War on education,

Bibliographisches

which must have been

Band 6: Europa III, R-Y.

InstiBand 5:

economy

towards

Wien: Franz Deuticke

Verlag.

je Kartenblatt.

He

in two parts, 1571

to

DM lo,-

schnitte

Mannheim:

Institut.

Der Atlas der Donaulinder

je Band DM 96,-.

Wenn in Geoforum

S/71

(S. 88-90)

erste Wiirdigung dieses grogen, vollen und ansprechend

anspruchs-

prlsentierten

gemacht.

Werkes

der Stadt 1930--1960

Einwohnerzahl),

Altersgruppen,

nach Wirtschaftsgruppen,

ment in this was that he did not spend

behagen, der groBen verlegerischen

Elektrizitatswirtschaft,

much of the first part of chapter

vielleicht

at the pre-colonial

One disappoint3 looking

period. There is now lots

zollen,

nur deshalb zu wenig Achtung

neuen Stils” vorgestellt

ed and organized

ausgerechnet

setting up of towns. Although would have been mainly

the

education

the job of the

zu

weil sie damals als ,,Llnderkunde

of evidence to how there were well-developsocieties, including

Leistung

wurde -

und dies

in einer besonders kritischen

Phase der aktuellen sion. Tatsachlich

methodischen

handelt

Diskus-

es sich urn eine

und ,,Wirtschaft

Es handelt sich urn folgende

rungsbewegung

to 1960.

erfreuliche

sind die Abund

urn je ftinf Karten bereichert

versucht wurde, so geschah das mit dem Un-

1925 and 1926

Damit

,,Beviilkerung”

Verkehr”

Entwicklung

eine

hat mit dem Er-

scheinen der 2. und 3. Lieferung

worden.

the “war”

at the expense of education.

looks at development

und Textblatter.

Fortschritte

II, G-Q;

great when one considers the resourdes which would be directed

(deutsch,

russisch). Je 5 Karten-

und Meere, in 8 Blnden.

Hrsg. vom Geographisch-Kartograph. tut Meyer.

Atlasder

2. und 3. Lieferung.

englisch, franzosisch,

new processes and new

creasing rapidity

Josef, Hrsg. (1972/73):

Donaulinder.

system is essential.

theories are being propounded footing

BREU,

for

Ubersicht),

und Analphabetismus

Metallurgic,

und Elektroindustrie, und graphische keramische

Bevolkesowie

(Standort-

Maschinen-,

Metall-

Holz-, Papier-, Zellulose-

lndustrie

und Baustoff-,

und chemische

Die augere Form, Iauterungen

Bevijlkerung

natiirliche lndustrie

Blatter: (nach

Kartographie,

sind wiederum

Glas,

Industrie. Druck,

hervorragend.

Er-