SECONDARY EDUCATION AS A TOOL OF NATIONAL INTEGRATION IN NIGERIA IN THE 21°" CENTURY

Nigeria is a heterogeneous country with multi-ethnic and religious divergent groups. Its nature of heterogeneity has led to mutual mistrust and suspicions among the diverse ethnic and religious groups with its negative effects on national integration. The main focus of this paper is, therefore, to examine the relevance of secondary education in fostering national integration among these divergent groups with a view to enhancing national unity in diversity. The paper stresses the fact that secondary education has the potential to create necessary awareness among the younger ones on the need for peaceful co-existence. Thus, effective secondary education ensures the production of responsible citizens with worthwhile knowledge, skills and values which will enable them contribute their quota to the overall development of the nation. The paper recommends amongst others ; proper funding of secondary education by the government at all levels, adequate supervision of secondary education by the authorities to see that the secondary education curriculum is well implemented, secondary education should be made mandatory for all children in Nigeria to reduce the level of ignorance and illiteracy in the country, and creation of jobs to teeming unemployed youths against ethnic barriers by the government to promote ethnic integration