LEARNER-CENTERED EDUCATION PARADIGM AS A SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM OF CULTISM IN OUR TERTIARY INSTITUTION

ABSTRACT

This study examined the learner-centered education paradigm as a solution to the problem of cultism in tertiary institutions in Oyo State, Nigeria. Cultism remains one of Nigeria's most persistent and destructive campus challenges, with recent research documenting tens of thousands of cult-related fatalities on Nigerian campuses over the past two decades, and Oyo State's own tertiary institutions have not been spared, with reported cult-related security incidents continuing into recent years. Alongside conventional disciplinary and enforcement responses, a growing body of educational research has pointed to the pedagogical environment itself, specifically the shift from rigid, teacher-centered instruction toward a more learner-centered educational paradigm, as a potentially underused lever for reducing the alienation and disengagement that can make students vulnerable to cult recruitment. The main purpose of this study was to identify the social problems associated with campus cult activities in tertiary institutions in Oyo State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study found out the social factors that lead to students' campus cultism in tertiary institutions in Oyo State, identified the social problems associated with cult activities in tertiary institutions, determined the influence of school type on cult activities happening in tertiary institutions in Oyo State, and found measures, including the adoption of a learner-centered education paradigm, that can effectively control campus cult activities in tertiary institutions in Oyo State. A descriptive survey research design was adopted, with data collected through structured questionnaires administered to students and staff in selected tertiary institutions in Oyo State, and analysed using descriptive statistics. The findings are expected to inform educators and institutional administrators on how pedagogical reform can complement existing efforts to curb cultism.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

Cultism in Nigerian tertiary institutions traces its origins to 1952, when the Pyrates Confraternity was founded at University College Ibadan as a non-violent fraternity, before splintering over subsequent decades into a network of secret cults whose activities have since become associated with violence and criminality across Nigerian campuses. The scale of the resulting harm has been severe, with recent analysis reporting more than 26,789 cult-related deaths recorded on Nigerian campuses between 2008 and 2023, and 581 additional deaths in 2024 alone. Oyo State, home to some of Nigeria's oldest and most prominent tertiary institutions, has not been insulated from this trend; security operations targeting suspected cult groups at institutions such as The Polytechnic, Ibadan, have continued to be reported in recent years, illustrating that the problem remains a live, ongoing concern for the state's tertiary education sector rather than a historical relic.

While conventional responses to cultism have tended to emphasize disciplinary measures, security enforcement, and legal deterrence, a distinct and growing strand of Nigerian educational research has examined the pedagogical environment itself as a contributing factor, and potential remedy. A 2022 qualitative study exploring Nigerian teachers' understanding and implementation of context-responsive learner-centered education in a Nigerian urban secondary school found that where teachers successfully adopted a learner-centered approach, positioning themselves as guides and caregivers rather than sole authority figures, this fostered a more student-friendly learning environment, improved teacher-student relationships, and offered students more motivating and engaging ways of participating in their own education, findings the researcher suggested carry implications for positive social change within a Nigerian educational system where strong teacher-centered methods otherwise persist (Enemuoh, 2022). This connection between engagement and vulnerability is indirectly reinforced by cultism-specific research: a 2023 study examining cultism as a contemporary social vice in Nigerian tertiary institutions identified inadequate parental discipline and exposure to negative peer company as significant contributing factors, and recommended stronger institutional and community engagement, alongside legal deterrence, as strategies for curbing the practice (Shangka & Hazo, 2023).

More directly relevant to the question of institutional strategy, a 2025 study examining public awareness and disciplinary approaches to managing cultism in Nigerian tertiary institutions found that transparency, structured dialogue, and creative, engagement-based interventions, such as student dramatizations used during orientation at some Nigerian universities to deter cult recruitment, proved effective tools for de-escalating cult influence, alongside more conventional disciplinary measures, with the study also documenting pilot interventions focused on value-based education and psychosocial support for at-risk students (Omenu, 2025). Taken together, this literature suggests that student engagement and pedagogical environment, the very dimensions a learner-centered education paradigm is designed to strengthen, may meaningfully complement conventional disciplinary responses in addressing the social and psychological vulnerabilities that make students susceptible to cult recruitment. It is against this background that this study examines the learner-centered education paradigm as a potential solution to the problem of cultism in tertiary institutions in Oyo State.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

Despite sustained disciplinary and security responses, cultism continues to inflict severe harm within Nigerian tertiary institutions, including those in Oyo State, where cult-related security incidents continue to be reported at institutions such as The Polytechnic, Ibadan. Existing research has identified a consistent set of social factors underlying student involvement in cultism, including peer influence and inadequate parental discipline (Shangka & Hazo, 2023), and has documented engagement-based institutional interventions as effective complements to conventional disciplinary measures (Omenu, 2025). Separately, research on learner-centered education in Nigerian secondary schools suggests that pedagogical environments emphasizing student engagement and teacher-student relationship quality can foster more positive, motivating learning experiences (Enemuoh, 2022). However, these two strands of research, cultism-specific studies and learner-centered pedagogy studies, have rarely been examined together, leaving an important gap in understanding whether and how a learner-centered education paradigm specifically could serve as a practical, tertiary-level strategy for reducing the social conditions that make students vulnerable to campus cultism in Oyo State. It is this gap that the present study seeks to address.

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to identify the social problems associated with campus cult activities in tertiary institutions in Oyo State, Nigeria. Specifically, the study sought to:

1. Find out the social factors that lead to students' campus cultism in tertiary institutions in Oyo State.
2. Identify the social problems associated with cult activities in tertiary institutions.
3. Determine the influence of school type on cult activities happening in tertiary institutions in Oyo State.
4. Find measures that can effectively control campus cult activities in tertiary institutions in Oyo State.

1.4 Research Questions

1. What social factors lead to students' campus cultism in tertiary institutions in Oyo State?
2. What social problems are associated with cult activities in tertiary institutions?
3. What influence does school type have on cult activities happening in tertiary institutions in Oyo State?
4. What measures, including the learner-centered education paradigm, can effectively control campus cult activities in tertiary institutions in Oyo State?

1.5 Research Hypotheses

Ho1: There is no significant relationship between school type and the prevalence of cult activities in tertiary institutions in Oyo State.

Ho2: Adoption of a learner-centered education paradigm has no significant effect on the control of campus cult activities in tertiary institutions in Oyo State.

1.6 Significance of the Study

This study will benefit tertiary institution administrators in Oyo State by providing evidence on how pedagogical reform, alongside conventional disciplinary measures, might help address cultism. It will benefit lecturers and educators, by highlighting the role of teaching approach in shaping student engagement and vulnerability to negative peer influence. It will benefit students, by contributing to a safer and more engaging campus learning environment. It will benefit policy makers within the Oyo State Ministry of Education and institutional security agencies, and will serve as a reference for future researchers examining pedagogy and student welfare in relation to campus cultism in Nigeria.

1.7 Scope of the Study

This study is limited to examining the social factors, social problems, influence of school type, and control measures, including the learner-centered education paradigm, relating to campus cultism in selected tertiary institutions in Oyo State.

1.8 Limitations of the Study

Given the sensitive nature of the topic, some respondents may have been reluctant to disclose full information regarding cult activities or personal involvement, potentially affecting the completeness of some responses. Time and resource constraints also limited the study to selected tertiary institutions in Oyo State rather than a comprehensive statewide survey.

1.9 Definition of Terms

Learner-Centered Education: A pedagogical approach in which the teacher acts as a facilitator and guide, prioritizing student engagement, needs, and active participation over teacher-led instruction.

Cultism: Membership in and activities associated with secret, often violent confraternities or cult groups operating within tertiary institutions.

Campus Cult Activities: Actions carried out by cult members within a tertiary institution's environment, including initiation rites and violent clashes.

School Type: A classification of tertiary institutions, such as university, polytechnic, or college of education.

Pedagogical Paradigm: The overarching framework or philosophy that guides how teaching and learning are structured within an educational setting.

REFERENCES

Enemuoh, C. M. (2022). Context-responsive learner-centered education in a secondary school [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University]. Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies.

Omenu, F. (2025). Public awareness and disciplinary approaches to managing cultism in Nigerian tertiary institutions. FNAS Journal of Basic and Environmental Research, 2(2).

Shangka, F. G., & Hazo, E. S. (2023). An appraisal of cultism as a contemporary social vice in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Direct Research Journal of Education and Vocational Studies, 5(7), 50–54.