Educational Challenges of Pupils with Orthopaedic and Visual Impairment in Sokoto State, Nigeria

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume VI, Issue I, January 2022 | ISSN 2454–6186

Educational Challenges of Pupils with Orthopaedic and Visual Impairment in Sokoto State, Nigeria

Asiyatu Abubakar Bagudo And Yinusa Abdulrafiu Yinka
Department of Adult Education and Extension Services, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Nigeria

ABSTRACT
This study investigated the educational challenges of pupils with orthopaedic and visual impairment in primary schools in Sokoto Central Educational Zone of Sokoto State, Nigeria. A quantitative survey study design was employed for the study. The purposive sampling technique was used to select 72 pupils with orthopaedic impairment and 89 pupils with visual impairment, making it 161 respondents at one special school and 20 inclusive primary schools within Sokoto Central Educational Zone. An adapted structured questionnaire was used for data collection, while a simple percentage was used in analyzing the data. The studyꞌs findings revealed that there were insufficient learning materials for the pupils with orthopaedic and visual impairment, lack of specially trained teachers, inaccessible infrastructures among others. The Study recommended that a module on special need conditions and inclusive education should be made compulsory for that all teacher training programmes. The government and Universal Basic Education should colloborate with development partners to provide adequate structures, infrastructures and all other facilites to meet the educational need of pupils with orthopeadic and visual challenges.
Introduction
The education of exceptional children is a challenging field. However a society committed to the welfare of its people cannot ignore special sections like the physically challenged people. The ever-growing population gives rise to numerous problems in many spheres of life, the problem of being physically challenged is an important one. According to Tiwari in Beena (2007), ꞌꞌBeing physically challenged is such a situation in which a personꞌs normal behaviour, movement, and routine work are affected, and it creates physical, mental, social and emotional disorders in their behaviour which make them different from a normal peopleꞌꞌ.
Educational challenges refer to problems facing students or pupils in educational settings that hinder their effective participation in school activities and outside the school environment. These problems serve as determinant factors that lead to the poor academic performance of studentꞌs or pupils at schools. The problems range from studentsꞌ factors, school factors, environmental factors, socio-economic background of the parents, e.t.c. Oladejo and Oladejo (2011) observed that the first educational challenge is the challenge of the general inadequacy of educational funding. Nigerian education is not adequately funded, and this also affects the education of students with disabilities. Meanwhile, Psychosocial comes from the words, psychological and social interrelationship of the psychological aspects about the thoughts, feelings, reactions, and behaviours of a person with the social aspect about the situation, circumstances, events, relationship with others which influence or affect the person in sometimes to the point of causing distress.

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