AN ASSESSMENT OF LITERACY APPROACHES AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC LIFE OF THE MIGRANT FISHERMEN IN RIVERS STATE

AN ASSESSMENT OF LITERACY APPROACHES AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC LIFE OF THE MIGRANT FISHERMEN IN RIVERS STATE

1. 1. Background Of Study

In most modern nations, the problem of illiteracy is a major concern. It's a phenomenon that's been highlighted in both national and international reports and recommendations. Illiteracy is defined as the inability to read, write, or compute with understanding as a concept (Okedara, 1981).

In the most basic sense, illiteracy is the polar opposite of literacy, which is defined as the ability to send and receive messages or information in a comprehensible written form. A person is considered literate, according to UNESCO (1976), when they have acquired the essential knowledge and skills that enable them to engage in all those activities in which literacy is required for effective functioning in individual groups and communities, and whose attainment in reading, writing, and arithmetic allows them to continue to use these skills. UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization) was founded in 1965. There are various assumptions that go into why countries start literacy programs. It's thought that: 1.Illiteracy is a source of shame, and literacy is a human right. 2.Literacy is a tool that can be used to promote national development in all areas. 3.A population that is illiterate may be criticized for perpetuating their predecessors' practices of producing. 4. Literacy will serve as a link between fatalistic and unquestioning acceptance, which is often assumed to characterize many rural residents. 5.Literacy will encourage people to work harder in order to break free from poverty.

Migrant fisherman will benefit from literacy by being able to adopt a more beneficial form of production, distribution, and consumption (Thompson 1989). Illiteracy is viewed as an illness because people who are illiterate lack crucial functional skills. They are unable to read or write, and a printed explanation of financial charges is incomprehensible to them.

Illiteracy appears to be more prevalent in some occupations and professions. Fishing is mostly the occupation of individuals who live in riverine areas in Nigeria. It goes without saying that fishing employs a large number of people. The geographical setting in which fishermen live is unsuitable. Because of the rough and hostile environment, they are not easily accessible. As a result, residents of fishing settlements appear to be secluded and neglected. They appear to be outside the scope of official policy and lack the fundamental infrastructure required for healthy life. As a result, immigrant fisherman have an extremely poor socioeconomic status. Furthermore, these fishermen face other factors that contribute to a poor quality of life, including infant mortality, young migration, a poorly educated population, hunger, and large families.

Migrant fisherman are forced to live in shacks due to their itinerant lifestyle. In addition, the fishermen face poor and insufficient medical treatment, dirty living conditions, and inadequate housing. The nomadic nature of the fishermen's employment and the geography of their environment, it is argued, necessitate particular education for migrant fishermen, which is viewed as fundamental to an average citizen's socio-economic life. It is impossible to provide traditional schooling to fishermen. Concerned educators propose adult literacy programs as a result.

1.2 Statement Of Problem

Migrant fisherman are a unique community whose socioeconomic life and contribution to the nation's economic progress has piqued the Nigerian government's interest. The government's goal of providing literacy instruction to migrant farmers in order to improve their quality of life appears to be a long way off. One of the issues, according to Ezewu and Tahir (1997), is that fishermen and their children typically regard formal schooling as unrelated to their employment and health. Furthermore, their habitat (which is predominantly riverine) and professional activities (which are migratory) appear to be barriers, as these elements make formal or western schooling impossible for the fisherman.

Other elements that have influenced the socio-economic life of fisherman, according to Ezeomah (1999), include cultural/traditional prejudices, poverty, a high fertility rate, excessive conservation, and opposition to innovation. The social environment of fishermen is made up of several aspects.

Furthermore, Ezeomah (1999) stated that while fishermen would have undertaken ambitious programs and risks in order to test new technologies, this is not the case because most fishermen lack the information, skills, and mindset required to take on such challenges. As a result, they continue to be destitute and underdeveloped. The main issue is that these fishermen lack basic education; the cause of this condition may be traced to many of the causes mentioned above, and the universal basic education (UBE) platform, on which the program is based, had greater provisions for the young and children. However, it is a given that fisherman, as citizens, will require government assistance to enhance their socioeconomic condition and literacy level, both of which were poor at the time of the research.

1.3 Objective Of Study

The primary aim of this study is to examine the literacy approaches and its effects on the socio-economic life of the migrant fishermen in Rivers State. Below are the specific objectives:

To examine if the socioeconomic status of migrant fishermen affects their willingness to participate in literacy programs.

To investigate if the perception of the instructors affects the migrant fishermen acquisition of literacy skills

To examine the extent to which the adoption of literacy approaches would enhance the productivity level of fishermen,

1.4 Research Hypotheses

The following hypothetical statements will be validated in the course of this study

H01: The socioeconomic status of migrant fishermen affects their willingness to participate in literacy programs.

H02: The perception of the instructors does not affect the acquisition of literacy skills by migrant fishermen.

H03: the extent to which the adoption of literacy approaches enhances the productivity level of fishermen is low.

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