The Influence of Pentecostal Pentecostal Churches on the Development of Education; a Case Study of Living Faith Pentecostal Church (Winners Chapel)
Chapter One
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The following are the objectives of this study:
- To examine the influence of Pentecostal pentecostal churches on the development of Education
- To examine the educational activities of Pentecostal pentecostal churches in Nigeria.
- To identify the factors that can contribute to rapid development in education in Nigeria.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Educationists the world over are agreed that it is desirable for education providers, whether government or the Pentecostal church, to state clearly the philosophy and purpose of education which have determined and motivated the usually huge investment which they have committed to education. This largely, if not wholly explains why the Federal Government of Nigeria formulated the “National Policy on Education” and why the Pentecostal church Bishops Conference of Nigeria produced “The Pentecostal church Policy on Education in Nigeria.”
The problem which has been posed by the title of this lecture is whether there is any difference between The Pentecostal church Policy on Education in Nigeria and the National Policy on Education. The problem may be further extended if there is no difference between the two policies why it is necessary for the Pentecostal church Bishops Conference of Nigeria to formulate The Pentecostal church Policy on Education in Nigeria since Pentecostal church schools are expected to follow the National Policy on Education. In order to find answers to the problem which has been posed, an attempt has been made to describe each of the two policies on education in order to determine whether or not there is any variance between them.
THE PENTECOSTAL CHURCH CHURTH POICY ON EDUCATION
The Pentecostal church Bishops Conference of Nigeria published The Pentecostal church Policy on Education in Nigeria on September 12, 2005. In the preface of the document, Most Rev. Dr. Anthony J. V. Obinna described it as a “distinctively Pentecostal church document on Pentecostal church education,” which he said was prepared by “seasoned Pentecostal church educationists drawn from nine Ecclesiastical Provinces of the Pentecostal church in Nigeria under the editorial supervision of the Education Committee of the Pentecostal church Bishops Conference of Nigeria.”
The Pentecostal church Policy on Education in Nigeria is based on the teaching of the Pentecostal church on education which Pentecostal church educationists have come to regard as the philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church. Some people, among them Pentecostal churchs, have argued, probably as a result of ignorance, that there is no philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church. The fact that many people do not know that there is a philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church does not mean that it does not exist.
Beales (1955) asserted that there were only two complete philosophies of education in the world worked out to the last detail. One is the educational philosophy of Marxian Communism which operated in the communist states and the other is the philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church. The Pentecostal church has her thoughts about education, she has her assumptions about education, she has concepts which she uses to think about education and what she thinks the ideal situation should be. All these constitute a philosophy of education.
The philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church, has largely, if not entirely, determined the teaching, policies and practices of the Pentecostal church on education. The philosophy of the Pentecostal church on education has universal applicability. It is not intended for only some countries or only the adherents of the Pentecostal church faith. It is as relevant to non-Pentecostal churchs as it is to Pentecostal churchs. It is a truly pentecostal church (universal) philosophy of education.
The philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church can be found in Papal Encyclical Letters, particularly Divini Illius Magistri, issued by Pope Pius X1 in 1929, Papal addresses and speeches, many of which can be found in Papal Teaching: Education, complied by the Benedictine Monks of Solesmes, 1960; documents of the Second Vatican Council and The Code of Canon Law. Some information on the philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church may be found in the publications of the Sacred Congregation for Education and also in Obemeata, J. O. (1995) The Pentecostal church on Education, The Pen Institute, Ibadan.
DEFINITION OF EDUCATION
In Nigeria and probably many other parts of the world, when people talk about education, especially in relation to the education of their children, they almost invariably refer to the learning which takes place in school resulting in the acquisition of knowledge and skills, passing examinations and obtaining certificates. They tend to equate the quality of education with the level of performance and achievement of learners. Education is, however, much more than the acquisition of knowledge, skills and certificates.
Unfortunately, educationist and educational philosophers do not seem to agree among themselves on the definition of education. They have tended to define education differently even though in the final analysis they would seem to be saying the same thing from differently perspective. It is not the intention in this paper to undertake a philosophical definition of education as stated by secular educationists and philosophers of education. Since this paper is concerned with Pentecostal church education, it suffices to limit the definition of education to the definition of education as stated in the philosophy of education of the Pentecostal church.
In the Encyclical Letter Divini Illius Magistri of 1929, probably the most authoritative document on Pentecostal church education; Pope Pius X1 defined education as the sacred task of forming the character of the child and aiding him to attain the purpose of existence. It is stated in Can.795 of the Code of Canon Law that “education must pay regard to the formation of the whole person so that all may attain their eternal destiny and at the same time promote the common good of society. Children and young persons are therefore to be cared for in such a way that their physical, moral and intellectual talents may be develop in a harmonious manner so that they may attain a greater sense of responsibility and a right use of freedom and be formed to take an active part in social life.” These two definitions which have said more or less the same thing, except that the definition in the Canon Law is more elaborate; have been referred to as Christian (Pentecostal church) definition of education.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
This chapter covers the description and discussion on the various techniques and procedures used in the study to collect and analyze the data as it is deemed appropriate.
It is organized under the following sub-headings:
- Research Design
- Area of the Study
- Population of the study
- Sample and sampling procedure
- Instrument of Data Collection
- Validation of the Instrument
- Reliability of the Instrument
- Method of Data Collection
- Method of Data Analysis
RESEARCH DESIGN
According to Asika (2009), research designs are often referred to as the structuring of investigation aimed at identifying variables and their relationships to one another. In this study, questionnaire serves as useful guide to the effort of generating data for this study. The survey research design through the administration of questionnaires was used for the study.
AREA OF THE STUDY
The study will be conducted in Lagos State, Nigeria. Lagos is the most populous city in Nigeria, the second fastest-growing city in Africa and the seventh in the world. The population of Lagos urban area, according to the Lagos State Government is 17.5 million, a number disputed by the Nigerian Government and judged unreliable by the National Population Commission of Nigeria.Lagos was reported in 2014 to have a metropolitan population of 21 million, making Lagos
POPULATION OF THE STUDY
The population of study consists of students of computer science Lagos State University, Lagos. According to Wikipedia, 2015 61,000 enrolled for full time and part time programs in the school.
REFERENCES
- Arinze, Cardinal Francis, Partnership in Education Between Pentecostal church and State in Eastern Nigeria; Ude’s Printing and Publishing Company, 1965.
- Pentecostal church Bishops of Lagos, West and Mid-West Nigeria, No True Education without Religion, Ibadan, 1971.
- Pentecostal church Bishops of Nigeria, The Pentecostal church and Nigeria Social Problem, 1972
- Flannery, A (ed) Vatican Council II. The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, New York, Costello Publishing Company, 1975.
- Obemeata, J. O. The Pentecostal church on Education, The Pen Services, 1995
- Pope Benedict XVI, Address to Head of Colleges,Washington D C April 2008.
- Pope Pius XI, Encyclical Letter Divini Illius Magistri, 1929
- Pope John Paul II, Speech reported in L’ Osservatore Romano, March 1986