Spatial Access, Household Income, and The Geography of Educational-Resource Affordability in Oyo Town, Nigeria

Oladiran Paul Olaniyi; Aminat Folakemi Adeleke

doi:10.63081/uejtl.v3i3.208

Authors

Oladiran Paul Olaniyi Department of Geography and Environmental Education, Emmanuel Alayande University of Education, Oyo, Nigeria https://orcid.org/0009-0008-2266-5413
Aminat Folakemi Adeleke Department of Geography and Environmental Education, Emmanuel Alayande University of Education, Oyo, Nigeria

Spatial access, Household income, Educational affordability, Urban inequality, Oyo Town, Nigeria

Abstract

Educational inequality in Nigerian cities persists despite expanded access to schooling, largely because of the rising cost burden of learning materials such as textbooks, uniforms, and stationery. This study examines how spatial accessibility and household income jointly shape the affordability of educational resources in Oyo Town, Nigeria, drawing on Central Place Theory and the Effectively Maintained Inequality (EMI) framework. A concurrent mixed-methods design was used, combining a structured household survey of four hundred households across core, intermediate, and semi-urban zones with interviews of fifty educational-material traders. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, chi-square tests of association, and multiple linear regression; qualitative data were analysed thematically. Regression results indicate that household income (Beta = 0.31, p < 0.001) and market proximity (Beta = 0.27, p = 0.015) are significant predictors of affordability, jointly explaining 42% of the variance in affordability scores (R squared = 0.42, Adjusted R squared = 0.39, F(3, 396) = 18.67, p < 0.001); household size was not a significant predictor (Beta = -0.05, p = 0.212). Households in peripheral zones reported higher effective costs, associated with transport expenditure and reduced market competition. The findings support treating educational-resource affordability as a spatially embedded outcome rather than a purely economic one, and the study recommends combining income-support measures with spatial interventions such as decentralised market provision and improved transport infrastructure.

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