Attitude of Undergraduates Towards Campus Politics in The University of Nigeria
CHAPTER ONE
Objective of the study
The objectives of the study are;
- To investigate the role of universities in the political education of students
- To find out the attitude of student towards campus politic in university
- To ascertain whether political activity in University affect academic performance of student
CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Student Activism
In addition to formal structures that encourage civic learning, the college experience can also foster civic engagement outside of the classroom. In the 1960s, first the Civil Rights Movement, then the Vietnam War inspired college students from around the country to organize. A significant evolution in the activism of the sixties and seventies was the alignment of students and faculty in support of common issues (Lipset, 1993). However, this did not extend through all of the administrative structure of the university as protests, such as the ones at the University of California at Berkeley in 1964, that centered on the creation and enforcement of campus policies around political activity and ended in the resignation ofthe president. After the Berkeley protests, many other students used similar protests on other campuses to fight for changes (Boren, 2001). Activism in the 1980’sand 1990’s was much lower key than in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Concern about careers, increased individualism, and the lack ofissues that drew young people together in passionate opposition have been cited as some reasons for this decline. A significant development ofthis era which continues to operate on college campuses today was the emergence ofthe Public Interest Research Groups (PIRG). These groups operate in state systems (NYPIRG in New York and OSPIRG in Oregon are examples) and promote involvement in politics to create change on issues important to young people such as the environment. Another significant period oftime in college activism was student mobilization against apartheid in South Africa and the ensuing protests demanding divestment of institutional resources from South African companies (Altbach & Cohen, 1990, Rhoads, 1997). The 1990’s were characterized by student involvement in identity politics (Rhoads, 1997, Rhoads, 1998). Examples include campus lobbying for cultural centers, protesting university activities perceived as unwe1coming for people of color, and gay, lesbian and bisexual people, and insisting on the creation of academic programs such as Ethnic Studies, and African American Studies (Rhoads, 1997; Rhoads, 1998). Colleges and universities have a mission of civic engagement and a history of student activism in higher education. Through curricular and co-curricular experiences, college students have opportunities to impact both local and national issues. Just as student political activism in the 1980s and 1990s began to take a different character from the 1960s and 1970s, the 2000s will surely emerge with its own particular identity of civic engagement and social activism.
College Student Political Involvement
Although voter turnout and overall political involvement has been on a steady decline over the past decades, there has been a recent increase in voting (CIRCLE, 2005; Lopez, Kirby & Sakoff, 2005), political engagement (Institute of Politics [lOP], 2005; Young, 2004), and participation in community problem solving (Gamson, 1997; Sirriani & Friedman, 1997). Additionally, students are reporting more positive attitudes about politics than in the past (Young, 2004). According to CIRCLE’s (Lopez, Kirby & Sakoff, 2005) report on voter turnout among 18-24 year old Americans, the youth vote was in steady decline until the 2004 election. In the 2004 presidential election, approximately 45% ofthe eligible voters in the 18-24 year old age bracket went to the polls (CIRCLE, 2005). This represents an increase from the 2000 and 1996 elections when turnout among young voters hovered around 36%. Early data from the 2008 election demonstrated a surge in youth voting with as many as 52% of eligible 18-29 year olds voting (CIRCLE, 2008).
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research design
The researcher used descriptive research survey design in building up this project work the choice of this research design was considered appropriate because of its advantages of identifying attributes of a large population from a group of individuals. The design was suitable for the study as the study sought to Attitude of undergraduates towards campus politics in d university of Nigeria
Sources of data collection
Data were collected from two main sources namely:
(i)Primary source and
(ii)Secondary source
Primary source:
These are materials of statistical investigation which were collected by the research for a particular purpose. They can be obtained through a survey, observation questionnaire or as experiment; the researcher has adopted the questionnaire method for this study.
Secondary source:
These are data from textbook Journal handset etc. they arise as byproducts of the same other purposes. Example administration, various other unpublished works and write ups were also used.
Population of the study
Population of a study is a group of persons or aggregate items, things the researcher is interested in getting information Attitude of undergraduates towards campus politics in d university of Nigeria. 200 students of University of Nsukka, Enugu state was selected randomly by the researcher as the population of the study.
CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION ANALYSIS INTERPRETATION OF DATA
Introduction
Efforts will be made at this stage to present, analyze and interpret the data collected during the field survey. This presentation will be based on the responses from the completed questionnaires. The result of this exercise will be summarized in tabular forms for easy references and analysis. It will also show answers to questions relating to the research questions for this research study. The researcher employed simple percentage in the analysis.
DATA ANALYSIS
The data collected from the respondents were analyzed in tabular form with simple percentage for easy understanding.
A total of 133(one hundred and thirty three) questionnaires were distributed and 133 questionnaires were returned.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
Introduction
It is important to ascertain that the objective of this study was to ascertain Attitude of undergraduates towards campus politics in d university of Nigeria
In the preceding chapter, the relevant data collected for this study were presented, critically analyzed and appropriate interpretation given. In this chapter, certain recommendations made which in the opinion of the researcher will be of benefits in addressing the attitude of undergraduates towards campus politics in d university of Nigeria
Summary
This study was Attitude of undergraduates towards campus politics in d university of Nigeria. Three objectives were raised which included: To investigate the role of universities in the political education of students, to find out the attitude of student towards campus politic in university and to ascertain whether political activity in University affect academic performance of student. In line with these objectives, two research hypotheses were formulated and two null hypotheses were posited. The total population for the study is 200 students of University of Nsukka, Enugu state. The researcher used questionnaires as the instrument for the data collection. Descriptive Survey research design was adopted for this study. A total of 133 respondents made up final year students, year 4 students, year 3 students and year 2 students were used for the study. The data collected were presented in tables and analyzed using simple percentages and frequencies
Conclusion
Family factor is the most influence political behavior of students gives an impact in campus life. The students has been shaped or inherited from their family and will changed when it come a few process of learning in campus. University of Nsukka is able to control the students’ political behavior from anti-establishment to pro-establishment thru a few strategies. Vice Chancellor, Deputy Vice Chancellor and other officers are successful to manage students’ needs and to solve the students’ problems. In conclusion, this study has an impact on student programmed, student affairs and university’s managers to compromise the needs and aspirations of the student
Recommendation
Action can and should be at the individual level, and there, it’s a matter of making a personal commitment to making some changes. Our study findings suggest that professors have a special role in the lives of students and are critical to in- and beyond-the-classroom experiences, and that political science professors play a unique role in creating campus-wide conditions for political learning and engagement. In the classroom, professors can work with the teachable moments in public life – elections, policy debates, data, and events. Students can learn the arts of discussion, critical inquiry, collective reasoning, and compromise. Beyond the classroom, professors play a significant role in creating the levels of trust and cohesion essential to conditions for political discourse and engagement. One place to do that is through advising. Another is through disciplinary clubs (e.g., the Political Science Club, the International House), ideal structures for talking about political issues that may be extraneous to a particular course but are nonetheless important for students to examine
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