Prof. Babatunde Adeniyi Adeyemi, a professor of Social Studies, Curriculum Studies and Educational Evaluation at Obafemi Awolowo University(OAU) Ile-Ife, on Tuesday declared that social studies as a problem-solver discipline that inculcates desirable social habits, attitude and values are needed for the survival of any society or nation.
He handed down the verdict at the 366th inaugural lecture of OAU, Ile-Ife which he delivered.
The erudite professor, who emphasised the importance of discipline, charged all the appropriate authorities to ensure the reintroduction of the subject into school curricula at all levels and be made compulsory.
In his paper, he made clear that the socio-economic economic challenges being faced in the country could be solved by social studies.
According to him, “Social studies borrows ideas from other traditional subjects such as Economics, History, Geography, Religious Studies, Political Science, Anthropology, Philosophy, Law and Medicine, among others.
“These chunks of ideas are synthesized to produce a whole. The ascendance of social studies is an answer to the complexities of the emerging industrialized world that seemed to require integrating social science and humanities for citizenship education. Social studies offer pertinent ideas, information, generalizations, and theories that are applied to human survival issues.
“A major aspiration of every nation is the desire for rapid development which naturally depends on the quality of leadership, fellowship, honesty, self-discipline, resource endowment, use of science and technology, rational utilization of her human and natural resources and above all unity and stability of the nation.”
Prof. Adeyemi recalled that the importance of social studies to human challenges informed the introduction of the discipline into school curricula by several nations after World War I and II to meet certain specific needs and aspirations of the people as a cure for social problems
He said: “This, however, partly explains why Social Studies has been given reverence at all levels of the Nigerian education system.
“The corruption-free, civilized, peaceful, and integrated society that Nigeria is yearning for cannot be achieved without a firm foundation as well as the successful implementation of social studies curricula at all educational levels.
“Social studies as a discipline are saddled with the responsibility of transmitting and instilling positive values into the citizens of this nation and it has been accepted as a school subject that should help students to attain the basic knowledge, skills, and positive attitudes needed to be responsible citizens and contributing members of society.
“My research in social studies is hinged on my findings which have revealed that adopting a multidisciplinary approach in social studies education would enable experts in curriculum studies as well as test and evaluation professionals to effectively investigate the complex human performance problems faced in today’s technologically advanced operational domains.”
The erudite professor charged the government at all levels, authorities and school curriculum designers to ensure social studies is reintroduced and made compulsory from elementary to tertiary education levels and get teachers, lecturers and schools equipped for the teaching of the discipline.
He posited that “Government at various levels should equip institutions with the necessary tools and infrastructure such as computers, computer laboratories, and technical assistance that will help to enhance their ICT literacy since frequent use of computer is an antidote to computer anxiety.
“Professional training should be made compulsory for all the teachers in service to keep them abreast of the innovation taking place in their field of endeavour
“The teachers of social studies should be more committed to their professional growth and development since the subject is a day-to-day activity that emphasizes the round development of man based on the three domains of learning (Cognitive, Affective and Psychomotor).
“Workshops and seminars should be organised for teachers where they will be exposed to various teaching styles. This is necessary to assist them in knowing the teaching style that will lead to the meaningful achievement of pupils/students in Social Studies.
“The curriculum planners and implementers should place more emphasis on the contents that foster the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals.
“Parents should be educated on their roles as the first teacher to their children and all levels of educational institutions should be able to organise parent-teacher meetings to enable the parents to meet with teachers and discuss problems affecting their children learning outcomes.
“Lecturers should use a variety of teaching methods in disseminating facts and ideas to students. It is hoped that the implementation of this recommendation would lead to the ultimate goal of improved teaching methods for achievements in Social Studies.
“Conducive environment should be provided with adequate facilities for CAI as a mode of instruction to be effectively utilized in schools.
“There is a need for Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) to be gradually introduced into the teaching and learning process in Nigeria to supplement the existing method of instruction.”
