FIRST-YEAR GENERAL NIGERIAN STUDIES (GNS) COURSES IN LAGOS STATE UNIVERSITY: WHAT OUR STUDENTS HAVE TO SAY

Abstract

An integral part of curriculum planning and development is course evaluation but previous studies have shown that it is rarely given the attention it deserves in Nigeria universities. General Nigerian Studies (GNS) courses in Lagos State University (LASU) are designed to match the needs of students, especially those in the first-year of the undergraduate programme. To justify the efforts of LASU-CGNS, this study investigated first-year students’ on 100-level GNS courses. The snowball non-probability technique was used to select respondents. 318 first-year students responded. Data collected were analysed using bar charts, pie charts and simple percentages. Findings show that first-year students agreed with the quality of course content, instructor s’ efficacy and the learning support strategies. Also, majority of respondents described their GNS experience with positive words such as ‘impactful’, ‘valuable’, and ‘enjoyable’ while some considerable numbers said they were ‘frustrated’. Some of the words that were scarcely mentioned are ‘toxic’, ‘disengaged’ and ‘downplayed’. In conclusion, the study served as appraisal for first-year LASU-GNS courses where the 30% autonomy granted by the National Universities Commission (NUC) had been implemented. Recommendations include provision of extra-classes on GNS courses that students find difficult to understand and organising regular workshops for resource persons.