Educational Challenges of School-Age Children in Skipped Generation Households in Nigeria

The article investigated educational challenges of Nigerian children raised in an unusual family context, the skipped generation households (SGHs). Specifically, it determined the proportion of school-age children in SGHs enrolled in schools and investigated children's perception of the effect of SGHs on their education. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. Data were collected from 2144 indexed children from the three major ethnic groups in Nigeria. The results showed that 88.2% of children in SGHs were enrolled in schools, and that significant regional variations existed in school attendance by the children. Specific educational challenges of the children in SGHs included having to do assignment alone, not getting enough time to study, difficulty in paying school fees, and late coming to school. The article brought to the fore the need for government to improve the welfare of children raised in SGHs in order to mitigate the educational challenges confronting them.