Managing Tertiary Education for Peace and Conflict Resolution in Nigeria

Peace is a necessary condition for the sustainable development of any nation. It is described as the absence of physical and structural violence, and the presence of justice. Peace education involves human rights and conflict resolution education. This justifies the prominence of peace and conflict resolution education in the educational agenda of nations. Based on this, the paper examines the management of tertiary education for peace and conflict resolution in Nigeria. The population of the study comprised lecturers from the Faculty of Social and Management Sciences from the Universities of Benin, Port Harcourt, Calabar and Uyo, totalling 2312. A sample of 231 lecturers was drawn for the study using the Cluster Sampling Technique. One research question and one null hypothesis were considered in this study. Data collection was done using a structured instrument tagged, "Managing Tertiary Education for Peace and Conflict Resolution" (MTEPCR) Questionnaire. The Instrument was duly validated and tested for reliability using the Cronbach Alpha reliability formula. This gave a reliability coefficient of 0.81. Descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation, and simple percentage were used to answer the research question. The null hypothesis was tested at 0.05 alpha level, the one-way ANOVA. The result of the study indicated a low extent in the implementation of peace and conflict resolution education in tertiary institutions. There was no substantial difference in the implementation of peace and conflict resolution education among four federal universities. Based on these findings, key policy, practice and research implications are discussed.

PEACE EDUCATION

Education for peace is a holistic approach. It nurtures knowledge ,skill,attitude and values -so that the learner can leave in harmony with self and others and handle conicts in a constructive way .peace empowers individuals to accept, create and enjoy the path of peace rather than only to be a consumer of it. It is a key tool for developing values , knowledge and life skills in a spirit of equality , empathy ,understanding and mutual respect among individuals.

CIVIC EDUCATION AS AN IMPORTANT AREA OF EDUCATION FOR PEACE

The reflections undertaken in this article focus on the role that civic education plays in education for peace. Certainly these two areas of educational activity are not the same; Education for Peace is a much broader and more complex process, requiring the involvement of all teachers. However, the knowledge, competences and motivations that should be developed as preparation for responsible civic participation are very important for building a peaceful order. I begin my reflections with a brief discussion of the most important issues related to contemporary perception of peace. Next, I refer to the terms "citizen", "citizenship", to highlight their meaning and in this context to reflect on the most important areas of civic education. This is the starting point for showing the tasks included in civic education as essential in the process of building peaceful coexistence of people. These tasks concern different areas of civic education: cognitive, competence, affective, and value areas.In carrying out these tasks we can hope to educate people who contribute to peace building through responsible civic activity.