THE CONCEPT OF EDUCATIONAL PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION

            The Oxford English Dictionary states that to plan means to device or design something to be done. Dror (1963) sees planning as the process of paring a set of decisions for action in the future directed at achieving goals by optional means. Implementation on the other hand means carrying out a plan. The execution of set of decisions or simply plan in action.

            Educational planning according to Beeby (1967) in broad sense is the exercising of foresight in determining the policy priorities and cost of educational system having due regard for economic and political realities, for the system potential for growth and for the needs of the country and of people served by the system.

            Coombs (1970) sees educational planning as the application of rational systematic analysis to the process of educational development with the aim of education more affective and efficient in responding to the need and goals of it’s student and the country.

            In the blue print put forward by the implementation committee on national policy on education (1979), educational planning is presented as a continuous process of obtaining and analyzing fact and empirical base of providing information to decision makers on how well the educational system is accomplishing it’s goals in particular, how the cost effectiveness of educational programmes and specific  project can be improved.

            From the foregoing definitions, one can rightly say quoting Ede (2001) that educational planning is making deliberate preparations and decision in the present concerning educational enterprises  based on empirical and analyzed data, to ensure that actions taken in future are such that would ensure that the goals of education are realized in the most educative and efficient manner within available resources.

            Implementation if applied to education means the mapping out of educational plan. It is a type of educational planning process.

            Once an education plan is approved, the next thing is to put the plan into action. The important stage simply means putting the plan into action. It is at this stage that the plan can encounter some problems such as lack of funds and lack of manpower to execute the plan. It is exactly in this sense that we talk of implementation problems of the 6-3-3-4 system of education.