Effects of Insurgency and Sit-At-Home Syndrome on Quality Secondary School Administration in South East Nigeria

Abstract

In recent times, one of the most devastating factors to Nigeria’s development, which has also posed the biggest threat to national leadership and security, is the proliferation and criminal activities of multiple insurgent groups across the various geopolitical regions of the country. More than any other factor, insurgency and other forms of terrorism have caused a colossal damage to Nigeria’s human, social, economic and infrastructural development. In the Northern parts of Nigeria, most of the schools have either been closed down or completely damaged. Hundreds of students have equally been abducted and are still in captivity. Many local government areas and communities have also been taken over and are under full control and administration of Boko Haram (which means western education is forbidden). This constitutes a threat to Nigeria’s corporate political existence as well as a great challenge and setback for educational management and administration and therefore need reform. The paper is based on the fact that education is the life wire of every nation. In the absence of quality assurance in secondary education, this important provision of the national policy on education becomes jeopardized. This paper examined some key concepts in the discourse and the negative effects of these syndromes on education. Recommendations on measures that can restore or curb deficiencies arising from these effects are made. One of the recommendations is the extension of school time table to accommodate about 450 hours of lesson period and more than 135 topics of sub-topics of the scheme of work or curriculum which are either lost or not taught every school term in the various subjects of both the junior and senior secondary school classes.