An analysis of the effectiveness of secondary school civic education on the attainment of national objectives in Nigeria

摘要

Noting that colonial policies worked against the integral development of Nigeria, post-colonial administrations employed different policy initiatives to redress the situation. This case study aimed to measure the effectiveness of secondary school civic education in this regard. The Federal Capital Territory Abuja was chosen as the place of study due to its rich demographic variables. Fifty-four participants, covering six different segments of stakeholders were interviewed for analysis and results. The examination results in civic education at the end of the nine years of "Universal Basic Education" (UBE) program and the crime data of secondary school age students were also examined for enhanced credibility. The latter served as indicators of students' understanding of the content of civic education and the demand for effective citizenship respectively. Since civic education was introduced into the UBE program to shore-up dwindling national objectives through education, the study used Human Capital Theory as the theoretical framework. This study was conducted between April and September, 2013. The findings showed that ingrained ethnic consciousness in the community, bad leadership, distorted value outlook, and get-rich-quick syndrome diminished the effectiveness of secondary school civic education in the quest for the actualization of national objectives.;Key Terms: National Objectives, Civic Education, Universal Basic Education, Human Capital.