Impact of Migration on Early Learners’ Academic Attainment and Health Care in a Mountain Learning Ecology in Idanre Hills, Nigeria

ABSTRACT The state of education in mountain communities is of global concern consequent on early learners in an alpine learning ecology being at serious risk of not learning to read as measured by international benchmarks, which is a hindrance to the achievement of quality education, and reduced inequality goals of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This paper presents the voices of early learners in a mountain learning ecology in Nigeria on the impacts of migration on their schooling and health care. The sample of the study consists of twenty-eight school-aged children and three teachers purposely selected in an alpine learning ecology in Nigeria. The study adopted a mixed method approach because it possesses both quantitative and qualitative dimensions. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data, while the general trend from responses to key informant interviews were identified and examined. Results showed that migration of parents have an influence on the educational performance and health care of their children in mountain learning ecologies. The study argues for the inclusion of education and health care of school children in global mountain research initiatives.