Effects of Curriculum on the Performance of Architecture Students in Building Structures in Southwestern Nigerian Public Universities (Published)
Students’ performance in Building structures courses have been observed to be generally low with their corresponding inadequate application of Structures knowledge in Architectural designs. There are many factors that may be responsible for this in which the curriculum used to teach the students is inclusive. This issue has not been adequately investigated. This study therefore analysed the effects of curriculum on the performance of Architecture students in Building structures in Southwestern Nigerian public Universities, with a view to improving on the performance of the students. The study employed descriptive survey. Five public universities approved by the National Universities Commission and Architects Registration Council of Nigeria namely: FUTA, LAUTECH, OAU, UNILAG and OOU were purposively sampled. The curricula of these selected universities were collected and reviewed with past examination questions and results on Building structures courses. The study revealed that curricula of all selected schools were in line with NUC and ARCON standards. The questions given to students’ during examinations were also standards and in line with the contents in the curricula in all selected universities. The study also revealed that the performance of the students in the courses was generally low across the selected universities. The study concluded that the curricula of schools selected are standard and good to train the students but should be re- evaluated to provide better alliance with the studio works (Architectural designs). The study recommended that topics not vital or relevant for students’ development in the contents should be removed to reduce overloading of works on students. There is need to reduce calculations or reduce calculations given to students’ during examinations to improve the performance of the students. Finally, periodical review and updating of curriculum are recommended to broaden the students’ knowledge in order to train high quality, talented students in Architecture and to meet the present and future trend development globally.
Keywords: Curriculum, Performance, Public Universities, architecture students, building structures
Evaluation of the Implementation of the Senior Secondary School Physics Curriculum in Nigeria (Published)
The study evaluated the Implementation of the Senior Secondary School Physics Curriculum in Nigeria. The purpose was to determine whether physics curriculum was implemented the way it should be or not. The study adopted the descriptive research design of the survey type. The population comprised all public senior secondary 3 physics teachers and students in Nigeria. The sample consisted of 60 teachers and 600 students selected through the multistage sampling procedure from six states selected from three geopolitical zones in Nigeria. Four research questions were raised for the study and the data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics of frequency counts, percentages, means and standard deviations. The results revealed that the contents of the curriculum were not fully implemented, the schools had qualified physics teachers, the teachers were moderately experienced and that classes had large population of students. It was recommended that the school authorities should implore physics teachers to work harder and more experienced teachers recruited.
Keywords: Curriculum, Evaluation, Implementation, instructional and infrastructural facilities
The role of educational curricula in achieving intellectual security for female students of the Faculties of Education at Yarmouk University from their point of view (Published)
This study investigates the role of educational curricula in achieving the intellectual security of education female students in Jordanian public universities from their perspectives. The descriptive analytical approach was followed, and an instrument was designed and implemented to a sample of 280 university female students from the Faculty of Education at Yarmouk University. The findings reveal that the role of educational curricula in achieving the intellectual security of female students at the faculties of education in Jordanian public universities was prominent from their viewpoints. The findings further reveal that there are no statistically significant differences in the role of educational curricula in achieving the intellectual security of female students at the Faculty of Education in Jordanian public universities attributed to the specialization variable, the academic year and the family monthly income. The researcher recommends that university educational curricula should emphasize the danger of engaging in extremist intellectual groups.
Keywords: Curriculum, Education, intellectual security
Effective Implementation of Social Studies Curriculum in Schools: Matters Arising (Published)
The purpose of this paper was to examine the extent to which social studies curriculum had been effectively implemented in schools. The paper highlighted content and context of the curriculum, adequate human resources, political factors and government policies, and availability and effective utilization of instructional resource as major factors that contribute to ineffective implementation of social studies curriculum in schools. Some challenges of social studies educationhad also been highlighted. The paper recommends that the government and other related agencies should organize conferences, seminars, workshops etc on the strategies, methods and construction of special tools for the evaluation of social studies curriculum if social studies must be effectively implemented.
Keywords: Curriculum, Human Resources, Instructional Materials, Social Studies
Assessment of Regular Teachers Knowledge of Curriculum Adaptation for Pupils with Mild Intellectual Disability in Calabar Education Zone Cross River State, Nigeria (Published)
The study assessed regular teachers’ knowledge of curriculum adaptation for pupils with mild intellectual disability in Calabar Education Zone, Cross River State, Nigeria. Four research questions were raised to guide the study. Literature were reviewed according to the sub-variables of the study. The population of the study was 5604 primary school teachers in 286 primary schools within the Calabar Education Zone of Cross River State, Nigeria. Stratified random sampling technique was used in selecting 560 teachers (males 253 and females 307) representing 10% of the entire population from 29 public primary schools. The instrument named: Regular Teachers’ Knowledge of Curriculum Adaptation Rating Scale Questionnaire (RTKCARSP) was developed by the researchers and was used for data collection. The data collected was analysed using descriptive statistics which include simple percentages, and mean. The result revealed that regular teachers’ have fair knowledge about pupils with mild intellectual disability, adapting curriculum content, adapting learning environment and adapting instructional materials for pupils with intellectual disability was also fair. It was recommended among others that awareness programmes on inclusive education should be regular by curriculum planners in collaboration with Ministry of Education to equip regular teachers with skills on how to implement a successful inclusive education programme.
Keywords: Adaptation, Curriculum, intellectual disability., regular teachers’
Institutional Academic Culture and Effective Implementation of Educational Technology Curriculum in Tertiary Institutions in Cross River State, Nigeria (Published)
This study investigated institutional academic culture influences educational technology curriculum implementation in tertiary institutions in Cross River State, Nigeria. To achieve the purpose of the study, two research questions were posed and two null hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopted the ex-post facto research design. The population of the study comprises of two thousand seven hundred and seventy-one (2,771) students of educational technology studying in the University of Calabar, the Cross River University of Technology, Calabar College of Education Akamkpa and College of Education Obudu, all in Cross River State. A total sample of six hundred and eighty-two (682) students was used for the study. The collected data was analyzed using One-Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) with LSD Post-hoc analysis for the two hypotheses. The findings of the study revealed that institutional academic culture significantly influence educational technology curriculum implementation in tertiary institutions in Cross River State Nigeria, it was recommended among other things that every school should make it compulsory to have regular laboratory experience to enhance the learning experiences and also promote creative culture through adherence to students centered learning method.
Keywords: Cross River State, Curriculum, Educational Technology, Effective Implementation, Tertiary Institutions, institutional academic culture
Effectiveness of B.ED Teachers Preparation Program Offered by Bahrain Teachers College (Published)
The teacher training program must be of paramount importance in order to establish a strong educational system that serves the objectives of the country’s educational policy. Bachelor of Education program (B.ED) in Bahrain Teachers College (BTC) at Bahrain University is specially designed to prepare an efficient teacher capable of implementing and achieving the educational objectives prepared by the Ministry of Education. This research aims to investigate the BTC graduates, senior teachers and school principals’ views of the B.ED program of BTC, and to what extent it prepared and trained BTC students to put theories into practice. Data was collected through a questionnaire. 183 participants took part in the study. The findings revealed that the program was effective in helping candidate teachers to acquire the necessary skills of instructional strategies, use of technology and effective communication. On the other hand, some of the participants responses demonstrated that some graduates are weak in content knowledge. Therefore, they suggest more training in the content knowledge for the specialization they have to teach.
Keywords: Competencies, Curriculum, Teaching, graduates
Implementation of Civic Education Curriculum and Patriotism among Public Primary School Pupils in Ahoada Senatorial Zone, Rivers State (Published)
This study examined the influence of implementation of Civic Education curriculum on patriotism among public primary school pupils in Ahoada Senatorial Zone, Rivers State. Two hypotheses were formulated to direct the study and literature reviewed was based on the variable under study. Ex-post-facto research design was adopted for the study. A total sample of 500 pupils was selected using simple random and stratified sampling procedure. The questionnaire was the main instruments used for data collection. The instrument was face-validated by two experts in measurement and evaluation from the University of Calabar. Correction were pointed out by the expert and adjusted by the researchers and the document was considered valid. The reliability estimate of the instrument was established through Cronbach Alpha reliability estimate which gave .76 and .78. These estimates were considered adequate and were used for the study. Independent t-test statistical technique was adopted to test the hypothesis at .05 level of significance. The result of the analysis revealed that, effective implementation of Civic Education Curriculum, Availability of teaching and learning materials in Civic Education significantly influence patriotism among public primary school pupils in Ahoada-Senatorial Zone of Rivers State. Based on this finding, it was recommended among others that, the government should promote Civil Education by ensuring effective implementation and provision of teaching and learning in primary schools.
Keywords: Civic Education, Curriculum, Implementation, Patriotism, senatorial zone
Identifying the Problems of Indonesian Primary School Teachers in Developing Learning Devices (Published)
This study aims to picture the ability of Indonesian elementary school teachers in developing learning devices as well as the problems they encountered and their needs. The research subjects are learning devices (curriculum, syllabus, lesson plan, teaching materials, learning media, evaluation instrument, and student work books). The data were taken from schools and teachers, document of learning devices, the organizers and managers of education units. The data was collected through interview technique, documentation, and observation; while the technique of data analysis is done descriptively-qualitative. The results showed that (1) the ability of Indonesian elementary school teachers in preparing instructional devices still need to be maximized. Although the quantity of its existence has been in accordance with the provisions of the national education standards agency, however, the quality can only reached an average of 9.78%; (2) the problems faced by elementary school teachers in preparing learning devices, namely: (a) unclear technical guidelines for the preparation of the curriculum and syllabus; (b) lesson plan is developed limited to administrative needs; (c) learning materials did not analyzed optimally; (d) instructional media did not designed properly; (e) the determination of evaluation tool and follow-up of learning was still very limited; (3) in designing learning devices, teachers need to understand some aspects, such as (a) the design of lesson plans, (b) the development of learning models and methods, (c) the development of media and teaching aids, (d) the development of learning implementation scenarios, and (e) the development of learning evaluation devices.
Keywords: Curriculum, Elementary School, Learning Device, Syllabus, Teachers’ Competence
Comparative Assessment of the Implementation of the Early Childhood Education Curriculum in Public and Private Schools in Rural Areas of Ogun State Nigeria (Published)
Early years are remarkable period of growth and development in the lives of children. Early Childhood Education (ECE) is therefore an important educational activity geared towards giving early positive experiences to children. In achieving this, Curriculum of Early Childhood Education becomes a key factor. It is however worrisome that the implementation of this curriculum in Nigerian pre-primary school is too low despite its importance. This study was therefore conducted to compare ECE curriculum implementation in private and public schools in the rural areas of Ogun State, Nigeria. Multi stage sampling technique was used to select 240 educational instructors as the sample size for this study. Data were collected with the aid of questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square, and t-test. Result of the study showed that majority (66.6%) of the respondents was between 21 – 40 years and the mean age was 36.6 years. Most (91.2%) of the respondents were female, married (78.8%), and had National Certificate in Education (48.8%) and Bachelor of Education (16.7%). The mean year of teaching experience was 12.4years. Most schools in the study area has teacher-pupil ratio of 1:35. Old curriculum was available (94.2%) and always used (78.8%) for teaching. Also, English Language (79.6%) constituted major means of communication and teaching of the children. Results of chi-square showed that significant association existed between ECE availability and ECE curriculum implementation in public and private schools (χ2 = 13.86, df = 3, p = 0.03) at p < 0.05 level. t-test analysis revealed that significant difference existed in the ECE curriculum implementation in private and public primary schools (t = 15.2, p = 0.00). The study established that implementation of ECE curriculum was generally low as most schools especially public primary schools lack basic school facilities and instructional materials and had no current edition of ECE curriculum. The study recommends that instructional materials should be adequately provided by the government, school management, individual proprietors and other stakeholders in the education sector, and Ministry of Education should ensure that new curriculum is in circulation and encourage its utilization for teaching in the study area.
Keywords: Curriculum, Early Childhood Education, Implementation, Private Schools, public