Students of the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO) were on Wednesday March 21, 2108 called upon to defend their theses on different cultural proposals submitted to NICO Training School, Lagos as part of the requirement for successful completion of Postgraduate Diploma course in Cultural Administration.
A panel of Examiners led by Professor Emmanuel Dandauraof Theatre and Cultural Studies Department, Nasarawa State University, Keffi (NSUK), was set up to appraise the research works presented for vetting.
According to Mrs. Brigitte RupmicitYerima, Director, Training School, the Project Defence Exercise is a form of credibility test to ascertain the authenticity of research works and also to find out if proper research methods were followed by students in carrying out the assigned research projects.
As the students mounted the podium to defend their projects in what can be considered as ‘moments of reckoning’, the Project Defence Panel explicitly demanded that each student indicate in their presentation: Why the work is important, how they gathered datafor the work, and how relevant the work is to society/academic discourse.
Some of the research papers presented by students include: The Significance of Traditional Approach to Peace and Conflict Resolution in Nigeria: A Study of Ikale People of Ondo State by OmomofeIyanu; Role of Indigenous Language in Sustainable Development of Nigeria by Chiwendu A. Special; the Significance of Traditional Medical Practice in Oron, AkwaIbom State of Nigeria by OkpoyoUdoyoand Juju Music: An Appraisal of king Sunny Ade’s Select Songs as a Means of Preserving and Promoting African Culture by Oluwadare Daniel.
Others are: Socio-Cultural Effects of Boko Haram Insurgency on Nigerian Youths: A Study of Maiduguri Metropolis by Umar Fatima; Significance of IgbaNdu in Promoting Peace and Security in Igbo Society: A Case Study of IsseleUku, Aniocha North LGA, Delta State by Onwumah C, Francis;The Socio-Cultural Relevance of Ukwa (Breadfruit) in Igboland: A Case Study of Isu-Njaba, and The Influence of Western Culture on Title-Taking in Igboland: A Case Study of EziniEhitteMbaise LGA of Omo State by Anawanti Kingsley, among others.
Project defence is a serious and rigorous exercise and can also be very meticulous with Professor Emmanuel Dandaura, an experienced examiner and renown contributor to cultural research sitting as one of theexaminers. None of the twenty students who defended their research works were spared from the drilling of the panelists.
As the project exercise came to an end that evening, it was clear to most participants that the project defenceexperience is demanding and maybe tough for the unprepared. However, in all, it is an experience very rewarding to students in particular and indeed to all participants of the exercise.
Corporate Affairs Unit
NICO Training School