DUAL-MANDATE IMPLEMENTATION AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT COMPETENCIES OF SOCIAL STUDIES PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS IN SOUTHEAST, NIGERIA

ABSTRACT: This study investigates the relationship between dual-mandate implementation and sustainable development competencies among Social Studies pre-service teachers and relevant academic-support personnel in selected Colleges of Education in South-East Nigeria. A correlational survey design was used. Five Colleges of Education, comprising three federal and two state owned namely: Federal College of Education, Ofeme-Ohuhu, Abia State; Federal College of Education (Technical), Umunze, Anambra State; Federal College of Education (Technical), Isu, Ebonyi State; Enugu State College of Education (Technical); and Benjamin Uwajumogu College of Education, Ihitte-Uboma, Imo State were studied. The population of the study was 1,380 individuals drown from students, academic staff non-academic/support staff of the institutions under study. The sample of the study was 500 participants comprising 398 students, 60 teaching staff and 42 non-teaching staff of the selected colleges were selected using proportionate stratified sampling technique and simple random sampling technique. Data were collected using two researcher-made instruments titled; Dual-Mandate Implementation Scale (DMIS), and Sustainable Development Competencies Scale (SDCS), which were structured around six dimensions of Dual-Mandate implementation namely: curriculum integration, programme coordination, staffing capacity, academic-resource adequacy, digital/instructional infrastructure and quality assurance, and six sustainable development competency domains namely: systems thinking, anticipatory, critical thinking, normative/ethical, strategic/action, and interpersonal/collaborative competence which were analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson Product-Moment Correlation, one-way ANOVA and multiple regression. Obtained results showed a high figure on Dual-Mandate implementation (M = 2.99, SD = 0.60) and sustainable development competencies (M = 3.20, SD = 0.52). Although respondents differed significantly in their perceptions of implementation, F(2, 497) = 18.77, p < .001, all six implementation dimensions showed positive significant relationships with sustainable development competencies. Keywords: dual mandate, sustainable development competencies, Social Studies, pre-service teachers, teacher education.