AN EVALUATION OF CHRISTIAN RELIGIOUS STUDIES CURRICULUM FOR JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN EBONYI STATE OF NIGERIA.

Abstract

This study aimed at evaluating the Christian religious Studies (CRS) curriculum for junior secondary schools in Ebonyi State of Nigeria. The CRS curriculum is used all over Nigeria for teaching Christian religious Studies. Survey design was adopted in the study. Three research questions and two null hypotheses that focused on the objectives of the study were formulated to guide the study. The respondents for the study were a sample of 336 junior secondary III students from 35 junior secondary schools drawn from the three educational zones of Ebonyi State using Proportionate Stratified Random Sampling Technique. The major instruments for data collection were a Christian Religious Studies Questionnaire (CRSQ) for teachers and students, a Junior Secondary Students’ Attitude Questionnaire (JSSAQ), and a Students’ Hypothetical Sociomoral Problem test (SHOMPT). Findings show among other things  that the content of the JS CRS curriculum and the methods used in teaching the subject were quite adequate for achieving the objectives of the programme. The teachers perceived all the identified methods of teaching, except the lecture method, all the assessment techniques as relevant, while they agreed that the dearth of instructional materials and lack of qualified CRS teachers militate against the achievement of the objectives of the CRS curriculum. Prominent among the recommendations of the study were: that more qualified and experienced teachers who are professionally trained in the art of teaching CRS be recruited; that Government provides adequate instructional material in the form of teaching aids to facilitate teaching and learning in the schools; and that teachers in the field take advantage of in-service, sandwich and workshop programmes to improve.