EFFECT OF RE-ENGINEERING CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT ON THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION IN NIGERIA

Abstract

This empirical study examined the effect of a re‑engineering curriculum development on quality education outcomes in public junior secondary schools in Imo state. A quasi‑experimental design was adopted, involving 240 students from four public junior secondary schools in Imo State, purposively selected and assigned to an experimental group (n=120) exposed to the re‑engineered curriculum for 12 weeks and a control group (n=120) that continued with the conventional curriculum. A structured questionnaire titled Curriculum Development and Quality Education in Nigeria (CDQE) was formulated with 25 items to explored respondents’ perceptions of re‑engineering curriculum and its perceived effects on quality education in Nigeria. Two research questions were analysed using descriptive statistics (means, standard deviations) and inferential statistics while the two null hypotheses were tested using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) at p<0.05. Results showed a statistically significant main effect of the re‑engineered curriculum on quality education outcomes, indicating that the re‑engineered curriculum accounted for 15% of the variance in quality education outcomes after controlling for pre‑test scores. Qualitative findings from semi‑structured interviews with 12 teachers revealed persistent implementation challenges, including inadequate teacher training and insufficient digital infrastructure. The study concluded that the effectiveness of curriculum re-engineering is contingent on complementary systemic investments. Recommendations include sustained teacher professional development, improved digital infrastructure and the establishment of a national curriculum monitoring framework.