The State of Music Education in Nigerian Secondary School Programme

Abstract

Music is generally regarded as an exquisite art form, a refined product of human culture. Throughout the ages,
man has found music to be essential in voicing his own innate sense of beauty. Music is not a thing apart from man: it is
the spiritualized expression of his finest and best inner self, thus involvement in music powerfully encourages selfesteem,
self-expression, creativity, and self-discipline. Every life can find in music some answer to its fundamental need
for aesthetic and emotional outlet. The cultural objective of education is yet to be attained unless it brings to every child
the consciousness that his own spirit may find satisfying expression through the arts. It is imperative, therefore, when
planning music curriculum for any society to ensure that such a plan reflects the cultural heritage of the society. This
paper attempts to assess the state of music education and its curriculum implementation in selected junior secondary
schools in Oyo and Ondo States of Nigeria. It draws on the perception of three hundred (300) students in relation to
music Planning and design, installation (dissemination and diffusion), process and the cost. It probes into problems of
teaching and learning of music and the workable strategies with which the teaching of the subject could be advanced to
an enviable height in Nigerian schools.