Adult Education and Sustainable Learning Outcome of Rural Widows of Central Northern Nigeria

In northern Nigeria, widows’ identities and status are defined within the mores, norms, traditional religions, and legal institutions of the cultures of the community. The ethnic cultural laws are oppressive and retrogressive. The nexus of these cultural pressures trigger discriminatory practices that deny school attending widows’ access, and completion of primary and secondary levels of education, leaving them literacy bankrupt and unskilled to fend for themselves and their children. These experiences motivated an all women Community Based Organization (CBO) to establish a Widows Training School to educate widows in vocational skills and basic literacy and numeracy. This paper examines research that was conducted with a sample of former graduates and attendees of the Widows Training School (WTS). The study is based on a qualitative educational research orientation, and the case study design. Multi-modal data were derived from Focused Group Interviews (FGIs) and Non Participant Observation (NPO) with a sample population of the widows. Data analysis engaged the qualitative process of transcription, categorization, and generation of codes that were merged into major themes, and presented in the as socio cultural status of the widows in the community; historical foundation, nature and curriculum implementation of the school; and the facets of sustainable learning outcome of the widows.