Training Music Teachers in Nigerian Colleges of Education: the 21st Century: Challenges and Prospects

Music is a significant part of Nigerian cultural heritage and as such occupies a unique space in general education of Nigerians. The importance of music in traditional and western education in the country cannot be overemphasized. Music education in Nigeria has become so fashionable to the extent that most of the time, it refers to the teaching of western music as practiced in the Western World. In the modern-day Nigeria, different classes of parents want their children to learn and perform music. Sometimes, these children are made by their parents to acquire special music training either through personal tutelage or music schools. The NCE system of education which suppose to serve as the foundational training for music teachers that would be needed in educational and social institutions in the country lacks the basic resources and personnel to adequately cope with the challenges of teaching music in the 21st Century in spite of its invaluable prospects. This book offers some suggestions.