ERIC Number: EJ1164206
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2012-Aug
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1089-9995
EISSN: N/A
Geoscience Awareness in Nigeria--A Preliminary Study
Okunlola, Olugbenga A.
Journal of Geoscience Education, v60 n3 p220-227 Aug 2012
Nigeria (total land area of 923,768 km2 ) is underlain by a crystalline Precambrian basement, Jurassic granites, and Cretaceous to Recent sedimentary rocks, and is prone in places to environmental degradation and geohazards. The country hosts approximately 34 different mineral types in about 855 locations with considerable oil and gas reserves. Given this background and with less than 0.004% of the country's population being professional geoscientists, this study sets out to ascertain, across a broad spectrum of the population, the levels of awareness of the geosciences in relation to: mineral endowments including oil and gas, geohazards, agriculture and food production, water supply, and national development. The survey, which utilized questionnaire and oral interview methods, involved a total of 21,252 respondents comprising students, school teachers, informal traders, professionals, and artisanal miners, drawn from the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria (North-west, Northeast, North-central, South-west, South-east, South-south), for comparative purposes. The results show generally low but wide variations in the levels of awareness of the relationship of the geosciences to the highlighted issues among the respondents. For example, the highest awareness of any of the issues was 75.12% by teachers in the South-east zone on the relationship of geosciences and geohazards, while the lowest was recorded among the primary school pupils of the North-east zone on the same issue (0.12%). A noticeable trend revealed by the survey is the relationship of the awareness levels and the literacy level among the respondents on one hand and the geopolitical zones on the other. Also, the awareness level also correlates with the relative intensity of geoscientific activity in the various zones. Appropriate strategies needed to enhance the level of awareness are suggested in the study.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Earth Science, Geology, Mineralogy, Knowledge Level, Fuels, Agricultural Production, Water, Questionnaires, Interviews, Teacher Attitudes, Student Attitudes, Professional Personnel, Geographic Regions, Correlation, Elementary Secondary Education, Postsecondary Education, Mining, Literacy, Employees
National Association of Geoscience Teachers. Carleton College W-SERC, One North College Street, Northfield, MN 55057. Tel: 540-568-6675; Fax: 540-568-8058; e-mail: jge@jmu.edu; Website: http://nagt-jge.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Nigeria
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A