Developing an Original Framework for Community-Based Curriculum Development in Rural Nigerian Schools

Community-based curriculum development positions the local community as a legitimate curriculum co-author alongside professional curriculum developers, and developing an original framework for this process in rural Nigerian school contexts offers a transformative alternative to the exclusively top-down national curriculum development tradition. This study developed an original community-based curriculum development framework for rural Nigerian schools, drawing on theoretical analysis and participatory field research across rural communities in Benue (NC), Kebbi (NW), and Cross River (SS) States. A participatory action research and theory-building methodology was employed over 20 months, involving 90 community members (30 per state), 45 rural school teachers, 15 curriculum development specialists, and 8 traditional authority figures in collaborative curriculum design processes. The participatory curriculum design exercises generated original curriculum content components for Basic Science, Social Studies, and English Language that integrated community knowledge systems, local environmental contexts, and indigenous problem-solving practices. Systematic analysis of the collaborative design processes generated the original Community-Based Curriculum Development Framework (CBCDF), specifying four process dimensions: community knowledge mapping, curriculum co-construction dialogue, NERDC alignment negotiation, and curriculum stewardship and updating. Implementation guidelines, quality standards, facilitator training requirements, and curriculum intellectual property protection provisions are specified. Expert review by 22 curriculum development and community engagement specialists confirmed the framework's theoretical originality and practical viability. The study recommends piloting in six rural schools with a 2-year outcome evaluation.

Keywords: community-based curriculum development, rural schools, Nigeria, participatory curriculum, original framework