Influence of Social Studies Instruction on the Development of Global Citizenship and Peacebuilding Skills among Secondary School Students in Abia State

The study investigated the influence of Social Studies instruction on the development of global citizenship and peacebuilding skills among secondary school students in Abia State, Nigeria. The study was prompted by the growing need to strengthen education’s role in fostering civic responsibility, empathy, and peaceful coexistence among young learners in a rapidly globalising world. Two research questions and two corresponding hypotheses guided the study. A survey research design was adopted, and data were collected from 195 Junior Secondary School (JSS 3) students selected from public and private schools across Aba and Umuahia education zones using a multi-stage sampling procedure. The instrument for data collection was a researcherdeveloped questionnaire titled Social Studies Global Citizenship and Peacebuilding Questionnaire (SSGCPQ), structured on a four-point Likert scale and validated by experts, with a reliability coefficient of 0.83. Data were analysed using mean, standard deviation, and an independent samples t-test for the hypotheses at the 0.05 level of significance. Findings revealed that Social Studies instruction moderately influenced students’ development of global citizenship values (overall mean = 2.74), enhancing awareness of global issues, cultural diversity, and civic responsibility. Similarly, Social Studies instruction positively impacted students’ peacebuilding skills (overall mean = 2.89), promoting tolerance, empathy, teamwork, and conflict resolution abilities. The t-test results showed no significant difference between public and private schools in students’ mean ratings on both variables, implying that Social Studies instruction contributes similarly to value formation across school types. The study concludes that Social Studies serves as an effective platform for nurturing global citizenship and peace-oriented dispositions among learners in Abia State. It recommends that Social Studies teachers adopt interactive, experiential, and value-based pedagogies, such as debates, simulations, and community projects, to deepen students’ global awareness and peacebuilding skills.