STUDENTS’ASSESSMENT OF INSTITUTIONAL LEADERS’ EFFECTIVENESS IN PROMOTING PEACE CULTURE IN PUBLIC UNIVERSITIES IN CROSS RIVER STATE, NIGERIA

By

B. A. Akuegwu and F. D. Nwi-ue

Presented To

Department of Educational Administration and Planning

This survey-designed study focused on students’ assessment of institutional leaders’ effectiveness in promoting peace culture in public universities in Cross River State. One research question and two hypotheses were isolated to give direction to this investigation. 3256 final year undergraduate students in the two public universities in the state constituted the population. Stratified random sampling technique was used to draw 326 of them to form the sample size. â€�“Peace Culture Promotion Effectiveness Questionnaire (PCPEQ)â€Â� developed by the researchers was used for data collection. Data collected were analysed using Descriptive Statistics (mean rating), Population t-test of single mean and Independent t-test statistical techniques. Results obtained indicated that institutional leaders are most effective in promoting participatory communication and free flow of information and least effective in promoting peer mediation in public universities as indicators of peace culture. Students’ assessment of institutional leaders’ effectiveness in promoting peace culture in public universities is significantly low. Students’ university affiliation has no significant influence on their assessment of institutional leaders’ effectiveness in promoting peace culture, with state university students having a slight edge over their federal university counterparts in their assessment of institutional leaders’ effectiveness in promoting peace culture. It was concluded that though institutional leaders are rated low, yet very effective in promoting certain aspects of peace culture.
KEYWORDS: Institutional leaders, effectiveness, peace culture, students.

Peace is required for every human endeavour to thrive. Universities as part of educational institutions cannot function effectively in achieving their goals and objectives without a peaceful environment. However, universities are gradually becoming volatile resulting to peace being elusive. Students vent their anger through violent demonstrations and damage school properties worth huge amount of money at the slightest, flimsiest and sometimes uncalled for reasons. This is a clear indication of near absence of peace culture in Nigerian universities.
Universities are established to train and equip men and women with skills for self fulfilment which is necessary for becoming useful to themselves and their societies. Thus, they solve manpower needs of their country. Aside from these, they are also expected to inculcate in students right and desirable knowledge, values, aptitudes and attitudes with which to impart positively on their immediate environment by promoting and sustaining peaceful coexistence. In essence, universities produce individuals who are found worthy in character and learning; that is sound, effective and total human beings.
The Nigerian nation has long realized the need for peaceful co-existence that she entrenched it as one of the cardinal philosophies of her education. Consequently, the overall philosophy of the nation is tailored towards using education to impart on her citizens the virtues of living in unity and harmony as one indivisible, indissoluble, democratic and sovereign nation which is founded on the principles of freedom, equality and justice. This is with a view to promoting inter-African solidarity and world peace through understanding (Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2013) -