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PERCEPTION OF SOCIAL MEDIA USE FOR MASS MOBILISATION AGAINST HERDSMEN ATTACKS IN BENUE STATE
No full textThe study investigated the perception of social media use for mass mobilization against herdsmen attacks in Benue State. The study was anchored on uses and gratification theory with agenda setting theory as supportive theoretical framework. A sample size of 400 was chosen using Taro Yamane’s formula for sample size determination. A multistage sampling technique was adopted for the study. Three local government areas; Katsina-Ala, Makurdi and Otukpo were purposively selected and the copies of the questionnaire were administered proportionately. The study found that Facebook Twitters, WhatsApp and YouTube were the social media sites used most often for mass mobilization against herdsmen attacks in Benue State.The study also found the ways respondents used social media sites for mass mobilization against herdsmen attacks include to share pictures of victims, upload video of victims, write a post against the attacks, upload pictures and video of victims, and protest through liking or commenting on government policies of cattle colony.On the factors that informed respondents perception, the study found that social media enabled engagement of issues about the attacks; social media helped mobilizers to keep in contact and inform a broader public about the unfolding of herdsmen attacks in Benue State; social media enabled a faster and easier circulation of information important for mass mobilization; social media provided the platform to express their views without restriction; and social media empowered people to make better informed decisions on herdsmen attacks in Benue State. The study concluded that there is a favourable perception of social media used for mass mobilization against herdsmen attacks in Benue State. The study recommended that government and policy makers should come up with a framework to control and limit the problem associated with social media sites for mass mobilization that poses as threat to democratization process. Also, media practitioners and media houses should integrate social media platforms to engage the citizen for mobilization especially facebook, YouTube and Twitter.SEL
PERCEPTION OF RADIO FOR POLITICAL MOBILIZATION: A STUDY OF RURAL DWELLERS IN BENUE STATE
No full textThis study examined the perception of radio for political mobilization with emphasis on rural dwellers in Benue State. Specifically, the objectives of the study were to find out the types of radio political programmes rural dwellers in Benue State listen to; determine the effectiveness of radio in political mobilization of rural dwellers in Benue State during elections as well as to find out the perception of rural dwellers on the use of radio for political mobilization during elections. The study is anchored on the agenda setting, social responsibility and the two steps flow theories. Survey research design was adopted with questionnaire and in-depth interview guide as instruments for data collection. Using a sample size of 400, the study found that majority of the rural dwellers in selected LGAs in Benue State representing 126(32.1%) listened to political jingles than other types of radio messages used for mobilization. Other programmes used for political mobilization were interview/discussion programme, campaign/ enlightenment programmes, news/commercial programmes and others. The study also found that rural dwellers had a favourable perception on radio for political mobilization. The study further found that rural dwellers based their judgment on radio stations’ political programmes on rural dwellers during election in Benue State. It was revealed that radio messages influenced rural dwellers positively in Benue State as 134(34.8%) of the rural dwellers affirmed that constant radio messages on political mobilization influenced electorate in making informed decision on choice of party and candidate. Furthermore, the study found that the major challenge rural dwellers faced in accessing radio messages for political mobilization is non-localization of radio programmes as 73(18.9%) rural dwellers affirmed. Other challenges identified included lack of electricity, language barrier, geographical isolation; illiteracy and lack of feedback from the rural dwellers, non-participatory messages as well as messages bias in favour of ruling party. These challenges were predominant in the 2011 general elections but there were improvements in the 2015 elections particularly in the area of awareness and mobilization. The study concluded that although there were challenges encountered in both elections, radio has been immensely useful in the political mobilization of rural dwellers in Benue State during elections as it did not only help them to know and identify contestants and their manifestoes, it taught them the election process and helped them made decisions to participate in the election. The study recommended among others that the use of radio in political mobilization of rural dwellers should be maintained and mobilization of this set of people should not be limited to election periods alone but regularly so as to fully participate in governance.SEL
IMPACT OF LEASE FINANCING ON FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE OF LISTED NIGERIAN OIL AND GAS MARKETING COMPANIES
No full textThis study is an empirical investigation into the impact of lease financing on financial performance of listed Nigerian oil and gas marketing companies. Specifically, it examines the impact of lease financing on financial performance (measured by profitability and liquidity) of the companies. The data for the study was collected from annual reports and accounts of 10 sampled oil and gas marketing companies that engaged in the lease financing and were also listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) not later than January, 2006 and remained listed till December, 2015. Descriptive and multiple regression techniques of data analysis were used in analyzing the data generated for the study. In addition, some diagnostic checks were carried out. The study found that lease financing has positive and significant impact on financial performance of listed Nigerian oil and gas marketing companies. The study therefore, recommends that companies should embrace lease financing as a method of financing their operations since empirical evidence suggests that it improves financial performance.SEL
EFFECTS OF COMPUTER SIMULATION AND FIELD TRIP INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES ON STUDENTS’ ACHIEVEMENT AND INTEREST IN ECOLOGY IN PLATEAU CENTRAL EDUCATION ZONE, NIGERIA
Full text linkThe study investigated the effects of computer simulation and field trip instructional strategies on students’ achievement and interest in ecology in Plateau Central Education Zone. The study was guided by six research questions while six hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopted the quasi- experimental design specifically the pre-test, post-test non-equivalent control group. The population of the study consisted of all the 5,207 SS1 students in all the government- owned Senior Secondary Schools in the study area for the 2017/2018 academic session. The sample consisted of 106 respondents selected through simple random, stratified and purposive sampling techniques. The sample size was 106 students from the six intact classes from rural and urban schools. The sample was assigned to two experimental groups and one control group. Data were collected using researcher- made Ecology Achievement Test (EAT) and an adopted Ecology Interest Inventory (EII). The instruments were validated by two experts in Science Education and one in Measurement and Evaluation. The EAT was subjected to a reliability analysis using Kuder-Richardson (K-R21) which yielded a reliability co-efficient of 0.81. The EII was analyzed using Crombach Alpha which also yielded a co-efficient of 0.77. Data collected were analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions while Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypotheses. The results of the study indicated that the use of computer simulation and field trip instructional strategies enhanced students’ interest and achievement in Ecology. However other results show that there was no significant difference in the mean achievement scores of urban and rural students taught Ecology using computer simulation and field trip instructional strategies. The study also show that there was a significant difference in the mean interest ratings of urban and rural students taught Ecology using computer simulation and field trip instructional strategies. Based on these findings, it was recommended among others that biology teachers should adopt the computer simulation and field trip strategies to teach ecology to arouse students’ interest and improve achievement across locations.SEL
EFFECTS OF PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING STRATEGY ON SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS’ INTEREST, ACHIEVEMENT AND RETENTION IN BIOLOGY IN TARABA STATE, NIGERIA
Full text linkThis study investigated the effects of problem-based learning strategy on Senior Secondary two (SS2) students’ interest, achievement and retention in Biology in Taraba state. The study was designed to find out whether teaching Biology using Problem-Based Learning Strategy (PBLS) could enhance students’ interest, increase students’ achievement and retention than using Conventional Teaching Method (CTM). The study also sought to find out the effect of treatment on students’ interest across gender. Six research questions and six hypotheses guided the study. The study adopted quasi experimental non-randomized pre-test post-test control type. The sample size for the study comprised 253 students. The population was 2,996 students from the 2016/2017 academic session. Students were sampled through purposive and simple random sampling techniques. Six intact classes from six co-educational schools in the southern zones of Taraba State were selected. Data were collected using Biology Achievement Test (BAT) and Biology Interest Questionnaire (BIQ)). BAT was subjected to reliability test using Kuder-Richardson (K-R 21) and a coefficient of 0.85 was obtained while correlation coefficient stability of BAT was 0.97 using Pearson product moment. Reliability coefficient of BIQ was 0.72 using Cronbach alpha.. Data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics of means and standard deviation to answer the research questions while inferential statistics of Analyses of Co-variance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypotheses. Findings from the study indicated that students taught Biology in the experimental group significantly increased in interest scores than those taught via the conventional method. There was no significant difference in the mean interest scores of male and female students in Biology in the experimental group. Students taught Biology using PBLS significantly achieved higher achievement scores than those taught via the conventional method. Male and female students taught Biology in the experimental group equally benefitted in achievement from the strategy. Students taught Biology using PBLS had higher significant retention scores than those taught via the conventional method. There was no significant difference in the mean retention scores of male and female students in the experimental group. Based on the findings, it was recommended amongst others that curriculum planners should incorporate PBLS into Biology curriculum and Biology teachers should be encouraged to make use of PBLS in their regular teaching as it may enhance students’ interest, achievement and retention in Biology.Biology Learning Strateg
EFFECTS OF MENTORING ENHANCED STRATEGY ON SELF-REGULATION, SELF-EFFICACY, INTEREST AND PERFORMANCE IN PHYSICS AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN BENUE STATE, NIGERIA
Full text linkThe study determined the effects of mentoring enhanced strategy on secondary school students’ self-regulation (SR), self-efficacy (SE), interest and performance in physic in education zone ‘C’ of Benue State, Nigeria. The study was guided by eight research questions while eight hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The design of the study was the quasi-experimental, non-randomized, pre-test and post-test control groups. The population of the study consisted of 4,064 SS Two physics students in the 94 schools in Education Zone C. The sample comprised 406 SS Two physics students drawn from 10 schools using multi-stage sampling technique. Four research instruments were adapted and used for data collection: Students’ Self-Regulation Scale (SSRS), Students’ Self-Efficacy Scale (SSES), Physics Interest Inventory (PII) and Physics Performance Test (PPT). Three of the research instruments were subjected to a reliability analysis using Cronbach’s Alpha Formula which yielded a reliability co-efficient of 0.85 for SSRS, 0.84 for SSES and 0.83 for PII while Kuder-Richardson Formula 21 (K-R21) was used which yielded a coefficient of 0.83 for PPT. Data collected were analyzed using discriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions while inferential statistics of Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test the hypotheses. The findings revealed that students who were exposed to mentoring exhibited higher self-regulation levels (P = 0.007˂0.05), interest level (P = 0.000˂0.05) and performance in physics (P = 0.000˂0.05) than those students who were not exposed to mentoring. There were however, no significant effects of mentoring on students’ self-efficacy level (P = 0.098˃0.05). While there were significant differences between male and female students’ self-efficacy level (P = 0.02˂0.05), interest level (P = 0.00˂0.05) and performance in physics (P = 0.00˂0.05), There was no significant difference between male and female students’ self-regulation level (P = 0.036˃0.05). Based on these findings, it was recommended among others that the use of mentoring enhanced strategy should be encouraged and used in physics instruction in secondary schools.Secondary School Students’ Performance in Physic
SECURITY CHALLENGES AND THE MANAGEMENT OF PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN NORTH CENTRAL ZONE OF NIGERIA
Full text linkThis study investigated the Influence of Security Challenges on the management of Public universities in North Central Zone of Nigeria. Seven research questions guided the study while seven hypotheses were tested. Related literature was reviewed under theoretical framework, conceptual framework, Empirical studies and the Summary. Survey research design of ex-post facto method was adopted for the study. The population of the study comprised 13,784 staff from 13 public universities in the North Central Zone of Nigeria. A sample of 612 respondents made up of 277 academic and 335 senior administrative staff from 12 Universities was used for the study. Multi-stage Sampling procedure involving Simple Random sampling, Stratified Random Sampling and Proportionate Random Sampling was used to select the respondents for this study. A 46-item, structured as four-point scale and titled “Security Challenges and Management Questionnaire (SCMQ)” was used for data collection. The instrument was validated by three experts and it was certified usable. The reliability of the instrument was done using the Cronbach Alpha and this yielded a correlation co-efficient of 0.96. Mean scores and Standard Deviations were used to answer the research questions while Chi-square (χ2) test of goodness of fit was used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. The findings indicated that armed banditry have significant effects on the management of public universities in the North Central Zone of Nigeria; Students’ Union crises also have significant influence on the management of the public universities as well as, ethnic crises, sectarian crises, inter- religious crises, cultism and insurgencies have significant influence on the management of public universities in the North Central Zone of Nigeria. It was recommended among others that government should employ advanced methods of checking and arresting criminals in the society like checking strictly the proliferation of arms in the country; creation of self sustaining job opportunities for the people. University management should emphasize meritocracy rather than nepotism during staff recruitment and students’ admissions.Security challenges in public universitie
PROSPERITY GOSPEL AND ITS IMPACT ON MEMBERS OF SELECTED PENTECOSTAL CHURCHES IN MAKURDI METROPOLIS
Full text linkProsperity gospel is a religious teaching that attracted a lot of concerns both from those who support it and those that see it negatively. There are different perceptions concerning what it is and its impact on selected Pentecostal Churches and their members. This study examined the issue of Prosperity gospel and its impact on Pentecostal Churches in Makurdi Metropolis.The study adopts descriptive and analytic methods and relied on primary and secondary sources. A total of 30 respondents were selected from each of the seven selected Pentecostal Church and these add up to a total of 210 samples. Purposive sampling technique was used in selecting this sample of 210 respondents. This study employs Draper’s tri-polar model, which in turn is modeled after Christina Grenholm and Daniel Patte’s tri-polar interpretive process. It is found in the study that an ambivalent relationship exists between the praxis of the prosperity gospel and believers attitudes towards poverty alleviation. Prosperity gospel appears to demonstrate elements of optimism, entrepreneurship, self-reliance and self-supporting attitudes among believers. On the other hand, religious rites espoused by preachers of the doctrine seem to be embedded with the exploitation of believers, individualism, and a pervasive emphasis on a “miraculous economy”, which impedes the socio-economic transformation believers themselves seek. It is, however, argued that the presence, nature, and activities of religious people need to be better understood, so that they can be taken into account in developmental activities. The study recommends that prosperity gospel needs to incorporate the reality of Christian suffering into its theology. It also needs to respect the sovereignty of God. While it should continue to encourage Christians to seek divine intervention to their problems, it should avoid manipulating them. It is necessary to set up avenues for religious dialogue between scholars of traditional theology and teachers of the prosperity gospel. Such dialogue will succeed only in an atmosphere of mutual respect. It is necessary for all sides to the dialogue to know that no one side has all the truth, and that we are all in the process of learning. The Christian Association of Nigeria and the universities are in a good position to encourage such dialogue. The average denominational theological institution is unfortunately too partisan to encourage genuine dialogue. Traditional theological schools should offer courses on charismatic churches. There are many important aspects of charismatic theology that other Christian theologians have not known. More than a single course is needed to understand charismatic bodies appreciably.Impact of prosperity gospe
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PARENTING STYLES AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS IN BENUE AND NASARAWA STATES OF NIGERIA
No full textThis study investigated the relationship between parenting styles and academic performance of senior secondary school students in Benue and Nasarawa states, Nigeria. The study examined four parental variables namely: authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and neglectful. Academic performance indicators explored include: motivation skills, communication skills, learning skills, creative skills and positive attitudes respectively. Eight research questions and eight hypotheses guided the study. Correlation design was adopted for the study. The population of study consisted 110,435 out of which a sample of 1500 was selected. Two self-structured questionnaires tagged "Parenting Style Questionnaires" and "Academic Performance Questionnaires" were used for data collection. The reliability of the validated instruments were determined through trial testing and the test yielded a reliability coefficient of .78 for the Parenting Styles Questionnaire while a reliability coefficient of .72 was obtained for the Academic Performance Questionnaire respectively. Data collected for the study were analyzed using mean scores, standard deviation and Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (PPMC) to answer the research questions, while regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses at 0 .05 alpha levels. The findings of the study revealed that authoritative and permissive parenting styles correlated positively with academic performance of senior secondary school students in Benue and Nasarawa states, Nigeria. Authoritarian and neglectful parenting styles correlated negatively with students' academic performance. However, there was a significant relationship between male and female students raised by differing parenting styles except the male and female students of authoritative parents that there was no significant relationship in the study area. Based on the findings, recommendations were made such as parents should adopt authoritative parenting styles due to its positive relationship with academic performance. Several suggestions were made. Among them was that a study should be undertaken on parenting styles and academic performance of senior secondary school students in privately owned secondary schools in Benue and Nasarawa states of Nigeria.SEL
MODERNISATION AND SHAGBA (NOBILITY) IN TIV SOCIETY
No full textWith the changing trends in modern society, secularism has altered the behaviour of man in the area of works, dressing, eating habit, rest, interaction, pleasure and marriage. This paradigm shift has necessitated a change in societal values as well. In Tiv religious culture, shagba, a term that connotes kindness, love, generousity and hospitality which was cherished among the Tiv has been altered. Shagba was practiced among the Tiv by way of assisting the less privileged with food, shelter, marriage, receiving and feeding visitors, inviting people for ceremonies such as amar (dance) where friendship was contracted and communal labour carried out. Shagba was a sine qua non in entrenching the values of unity and sense of belonging among the Tiv people. This research evaluates the role of Shagba in Tiv religion and culture. The descriptive and analytic method of data collection was adopted. The objective is to trace the origin of Shagba and show how it was practised in Tiv religion and culture. The research employs primary and secondary sources of data collection. Primary data was obtained through oral interviews using ten (10) open-ended questions. Secondary data was collected from books, journals, magazines, internet sources among others. The data collected were analysed and interpreted using the descriptive method. The study found that the practice of Shagba among the traditional Tiv society brought unity and development; however, the advent of modernisation led to a change in the core religious and cultural values of the Tiv, shagba (nobility) inclusive. The work benefited the Tiv people of Central Nigeria especially those in the 215t century as it provides sufficient reasons for the understanding and preservation of this cultural practice and value. The work recommended that emphasis should be on the communal way of life of the Tiv which de-emphasised individualism and self-centeredness and a renewed interest in seeking to revive Tiv traditional practice of shagba which seems to be weakening in the wake of modernity. The work concluded, therefore, that though modernisation has brought a change in the role of shagba in Tiv religion and culture, the practice of shagba has not been discarded completely and it will bring about unity and development in Tivlan