THE ROLE OF NIGERIAN MASS MEDIA IN CURRICULUM CHANGE AND IMPLEMENTATION AT BASIC EDUCATION LEVEL IN NIGERIA

This study investigated the role of Nigerian mass media in curriculum change and implementation at the Basic Education level in Nigeria. The study was aimed at assessing the following objectives: to find out the changes in the basic education curriculum influenced by Nigerian mass media and to determine the role being played by the mass media in curriculum implementation at the Basic Education level in Nigeria. Two corresponding research questions were answered while two null hypotheses were tested. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design. A total of 200 media practitioners from print, electronic, new media and news agencies were used for the study. A self-designed questionnaire was used for data collection. The questionnaire was pilot tested and a reliability index of 0.84 was obtained. Out of a total of 200 respondents used for the study, only 198 respondents correctly filled and returned their questionnaire. The data collected was analyzed using frequency counts and mean, while the non-parametric statistics of chi-square (X²) was used to test all the hypotheses at alpha 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that the Mass Media has influence in the existing changes of the basic education curriculum. Also, the Nigerian mass media played a significant role in curriculum implementation at the Basic Education level in Nigeria. Recommendations were made such as, to influence changes in the basic education curriculum, the mass media should serve as watchdogs of the society, they should analyze, appraise or criticize as the case may be, the activities of the Nigeria Basic Education. Also, in a diverse society such as Nigeria, there is need for the media to play an active role in enlightening and sensitizing all stakeholders and the general public on the basic education curriculum.