Social Studies Teachers’ and Students’ Familiarity with and Use of Core Values for the Sustainability of Nation-building

Abstract

This study focused on the extent to which both teachers and students of Social Studies have familiarized themselves with Nigeria's core values and evaluated the extent of its use for nation building. The population of this study comprised all teachers and students of social studies in tertiary institutions in Ilorin. The instrument used for data collection was questionnaire that was developed by the researchers and validated by experts in Social Studies. Mean, percentage and independent t-test statistical tools were used to answer the research questions and hypotheses respectively. The outcome of the study revealed that there are three main Nigerian core values in which the Social Studies teachers and students are more familiar; the familiarity and use levels of core values of teachers and students were high, but the level of use of core values for the sustainability of nation-building by teachers is somewhat higher than that of the students; There was no significant difference in the familiarity and use levels of teachers and students, but there was a significant difference in the use of core values for the sustainability of nation-building of teachers and students. The study concluded that there is a need for all Social Studies teachers at all levels to deliver every topic related to values in a pragmatic way such that it will reflect the aspirations of sustainable nation-building, this, in turn, will facilitate the practical and utilitarian characteristics of Social Studies objectives towards making identifiable impacts on the society