The Effect Of Government, Community And Private Sector On Early Childhood Education
[A CASE STUDY OF ILORIN SOUTH LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, KWARA STATE]

CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
    This chapter centers on the methodology adopted in carrying out this study. The highlights of the methodology include: research design, population of the study, sample and sampling technique, research instruments, validity and liability of instrument, procedure for data collection and method of data analysis.
3.1     Research Design
    The research design adopted for this study is basically a descriptive survey. Descriptive survey allows for an accurate record of what was observed, so that the analysis could yield meaningful information for adequate description of the situation as they exist. It also allows the researcher to be able to generalise findings to the target population.
3.2    Population of the Study
    The population of the study comprised of all the public primary schools in Ilorin south Local Government Area of Kwara State.
3.3    Sample and Sampling Techniques
Purposive random sampling technique was used in selecting a total of 102 teachers serving in the Early Childhood Education (ECCDE) section of different public primary schools in one hundred teachers from different schools in Ilorin South Local Government Area of Kwara State.
3.4     Instruments for Data Collection
     The research instrument of the study was a research developed questionnaire. The titled: Contribution on Early Childhood Education Questionnaire (COECEQ). The questionnaire consisted of two sections: ‘A’ and ‘B’. Section ‘A’ was based on personal data of the respondents while section ‘B’ consisted of items on Early Childhood Education in Ilorin South Local Government Area of kwara State. The questionnaire was rated on the Likert-type scale: Strongly agree (SA), Agree (A), Disagree (D), and Strongly Disagree (SD).
3.5     Validity and Reliability of the Instrument
    In order to ascertain the validity of the instruments used in this study, the draft of the instruments (COECEQ) was given to three experts in the National Open University of Nigeria for both face and content validity. Those that were consulted are the project supervisor, and two lecturers in the Department of Educational Foundation and Test and Measurement in the Faculty of Education. Their opinions and suggestions were incorporated into the final instrument that was administered on the respondents. The test re-test reliability method was adopted in determining the reliability of the instrument. The two sets of scores obtained from the tests were correlated using Pearson product-moment correlation statistic. The correlation coefficients obtained was 0.78. This shows that, the questionnaire is reliable.
3.6     Procedure for Data Collection
    The researcher with the help of a trained research assistant visited the sampled primary schools under study. A total of 102 questionnaires were administered to participants in the sampled schools for proper documentation of results. The researcher and the research assistant distributed and collected the questionnaire after completion in order to enhance effectiveness in the rate of returns. Table 1 indicates the distribution and retrieval of the questionnaire.