Education for All: A Myth or Reality? Limitations of Implementing Education for All: The Sierra Leone Context

Abstract

Civil war and conflict in African nations tend to involve the destruction, damage, and neglect of schools and classrooms. Sierra Leone is no exception. The slaughter and dispersal of children and the unemployment of teachers, coupled with the loss of equipment, textbooks and other supplies, accounted for the rapid decline in school enrolments during the civil war. This chapter seeks to provide a synthesis of the impact of the global mandate “Education for All” in Sierra Leone's local and national context. It provides examples of contextual realities and challenges that confront the implementation of this international mandate. The chapter argues that Sierra Leone's embrace and constant striving for the actualization of this global mandate is encouraging, but lacks significant contextual quality to make it a truly realized promise. Although progress can be classified as ongoing and truly encouraging, vital historical lessons can be learnt as the country forges to foster the realization of this dream.

Citation

Renner Esq, J. (2007), "Education for All: A Myth or Reality? Limitations of Implementing Education for All: The Sierra Leone Context", Baker, D.P. and Wiseman, A.W. (Ed.) Education for All (International Perspectives on Education and Society, Vol. 8), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 493-520. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1479-3679(06)08017-0