Introduction:
According to CFI (2022), quantitative analysis is the process of gathering and analyzing measurable and verifiable data such as revenues, market share, and wages to better understand a company’s behavior and performance. When making decisions, business owners and company directors used to rely heavily on their experience and instinct. However, with the advancement of data technology, quantitative analysis is now regarded as a superior method for making informed decisions. The primary responsibility of a quantitative analyst is to present a given hypothetical situation in numerical terms.
Performance evaluation, financial instrument evaluation, and prediction are all aided by quantitative analysis. When items differ in terms of measurable characteristics, a quantitative classification is appropriate. Schools can be classified based on enrollment, number of teachers on staff, gender, and so on. Students can be divided into two groups based on their gender. A quantitative data set must be quantifiable. Sometimes, by making minor changes, qualitatively classified data can be reclassified quantitatively.
School curricula, for example, as qualitative information, can be quantitatively reclassified as science, vocational, social sciences, and arts. Quantitative data are educational information documents in figures that can be easily measured to provide meaningful interpretation for effective educational planning and problem solving.
These include numerical figures or data about:
- the schools,
- the students,
- the teachers and non-teachers,
- the population,
- finance,
- facilities and equipment,
- school inspection,
- school assets and liabilities, and
- available benchmarks and standards.
Five main challenges that make quantitative analysis of our educational planning process at times ineffective
There are several problems confronting making adequate and reliable data for statistical and quantitative analysis in education in most developing countries. Nigeria is not an exception.
The five among the challenges include:
- Inadequate funding for primary data collection
- Inadequate technology to store, retrieve, and process data
- Low literacy, particularly when collecting data from primary sources
- A deficient census base
- Fraudulent compilation of the majority of official records
Inadequate Funding
Many developing countries are impoverished. They do not have sufficient funds to invest in many critical developmental needs. Primary data generation is an expensive and time-consuming process. Many data are fraudulently compiled as a result of insufficient funding. To save money, many researchers ‘juggle’ figures and compile data in their rooms and offices.
Inadequacy of Information and Computer Technology (ICT) Use:
The world has become increasingly technologically inclined. Data collection, retrieval, storage, and processing are all technologically advanced processes nowadays. However, installing ICT for statistical purposes is expensive. This is a major issue in Nigeria. Furthermore, many people, including academics, are not ICT compliant or proficient. Many people still lack computer literacy.
Low Level Literacy:
Although access to education has improved in Nigeria, the country still has a large number of illiterates, particularly in rural areas. Many Nigerians may be unable to respond to questionnaires designed to generate data because they are unable to read, write, or both. When they respond, they sometimes give incorrect, incoherent, and false responses, which may impede the generation of reliable data for planning. In many cases, the officials dispatched to the field to collect data are unaware of the data collection processes. Many employees in government offices and agencies in charge of data collection and compilation are untrained and unprofessional.
Poor Census Base
Nigeria has conducted several censuses, all of which have resulted in controversies among various groups in the country. Some people have complained about over-enumeration in some areas and under-enumeration in others. Some state governments have even rejected the census data provided to them. Because census figures serve as the foundation for any nation’s planning, it becomes difficult in Nigeria to rely on contentious figures. The 2006 census figure has yet to be released to the public.
Fraudulent Compilation of Official Records
Planners all over the world rely heavily on official records for information and data. However, when records are fraudulently compiled, they become untrustworthy. It may interest you to know that in a study conducted on Nigerian technical colleges in 1989, some researchers collected data on the same subject from three official sources (the schools, the Federal Ministry of Education and National Board for Technical Education). The figures obtained from these three sources varied. The researchers were forced to rely on average figures. Some of these figures are purposefully inflated in order to collect money from the government.
Problems and Limitations of the Use of Statistics in Educational Planning
We have just discussed the various roles and uses of statistics to planners, policy maker, government and researchers. These uses and roles, not-withstanding, statistics as a tool of analysis, has some limitations, especially to educational planning. The limitations include the following:
All problems, especially in education may not be quantifiable in terms of figures, because education deals with people from various background and interest. For example, educational planners are yet to agree statistically on the actual cost of education. The actual private cost of education is not known, because it varies from person to person and household to household. Even the cost by government is difficult to analyse, because various governmental agencies and parastatals spend on education. The problem of demographic analysis is worrisome. Educational planners depend on the official school- going age for planning, whereas hardly do parents respect the official age in sending these children to school.
Conclusion
Just like other variables in the educational administration; quantitative analysis is faced with myriad of challenges which educational administrators must surmount to be able to effectively and efficiently administer educational programmes. Looking at the problems mentioned, we will note that some of the problems are internal while others are external.
References
CFI Team https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/data-science/quantitative-analysis/ Updated November 28, 2022 retrieved on the 14th December, 2022
Croxton, F. E. and Cowden, D.J. (1955) Applied general statistics. New York: Prentice – Hall Inc.
NOUN Course ware (2011) EDP 803 Statistical analysis and Quantification in Educational planning; National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) Lagos, Nigeria.
Nwankwo, J. I. (1981) Educational planning: Theory and methods. Lahore/Karachi: IZHARSONS.
