CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Indecent appearance has come to characterize the dress pattern of many students on campuses of higher learning in Nigeria, there is hardly any higher institution of learning in this country that is not faced with his nauseating problem. The way students on theses campuses of learning particularly the female ones dress seductively leaves much to be desired. What the girls call skirts that they wear is just “one inch” longer than their pants. When they put on such dresses, they struggle to sit down, find it diicult in climbing machines, cross gutter as well as pick anything from the ground. Apart from the skimpy and tight fitting nature of these dresses, they are again transparent, revealing certain parts of the bodies that under normal dressing patterns ought to be hidden away from the glare of people. In the case of boys, their pattern of dress is different. It makes them to look so dirty and very unattractive with unkempt hairs and dirty jeans having pockets of holes deliberately created around the knees and the lower part of the trousers allowed to flow on the ground because they go through their heals into their legs as socks. The waist of their trousers are lowered and fastened tightly at the middle of the bottom lobes to reveal their boxers (pants) and when they are walking they drag their legs and one of their hands particularly, the le one, cupping their invisible scrotum as if they will fall to the ground if not supposed. Many of them because of how they dressed had at one time or the other become victims of rape, lured into prostitution, used for ritual purpose, unable to complete their education or training and also engaged in other ancillary social and moral problems like cultism and lying to mention these few. Although, there are known universally acceptable way or ways of dressing, dresses are meant to serve some definable purpose, country or region notwithstanding.
They are part of the peoples culture and they define their tribal or ethnic identity. Apart from dresses being a means for cultural identity they are for ornamental or aesthetic purposes, for protection of the body against harsh weather condition as well as covering the intimate part of the body. These purposes are important especially as they form major aspects of a person’s personality. But as important as these purpose are, they have been defeated by the Nigerian youths, their dress pattern are most time anti-African dress pattern invented. They usually dress in a manner that does not show especially that of Nigerian encourages modesty in appearance as do the Christian and Islamic religion where the larger population of these youth claim to be worshiping God. This un-african dress pattern among the youths of this generation are generated a lot of concern and worry among the citizenry of the country. Religion institution as well as institution of learning are not resting on their bars to watch this moral act being perpetuated, but they speak against it. For instance Olori (2003) reported that at the university of Abuja rules were made that any dress won must cover intimate part of the body, must not expose the breast, stomach, navel and bare chest. But on this campus student still dress indecently. In the same vein, in Edo State College of Education Ekiadolor, where this study is focused, it seems that the introduction of a dress code was misinterpreted by the students to mean they should dress indecently.
This is because what became obvious with students in this college aer the introduction of this dress code was the alarming and arrant ways that they begin to dress indecently. One is not however surprised because what is typically of most Nigerian administrators is always a wide gap between policy and formulation and execution. Indecent dressing even though is not accepted as the normality, it seem to be gaining ascendancy. One wonders what becomes of the society tomorrow with the caliber of students that are being trained. If rules are made for people, they suppose to be adequately informed why such rules are made. It is for this very reason this project attempts to counsel students about the cause, effects of indecent dressing as well as suggestion of solutions that could remedy the further spread of this immoral act on campuses of learning in Nigeria.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS
This behaviour is of a hydra headed origin. It is not just a behavior that developed overnight, but an accumulated behavioural pattern that could be attributed to the home due to neglect and/or poor parenting. The effects of globalization arising from wrong values of exportation and importation, reflection of high rate of moral decadence in the large society (corruption and the led), peer pressure and the desire to belong as well as fading values and demonic influence all contribute to the act of indecent dressing.
1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The main motive of the study is to investigate the effects of dressing in the Nigerian educational sector. Indecent dressing in higher institutions of learning, emphasis on college of education, Ekiadolor, Ovia North East Local Government Area of Edo State. This study is to find out whether students of higher learning can still dress decently. This study intends to find out possible solutions to indecent dressing in the Nigerian educational sector. Many teachers, administrators, security personnel, counselors are worried when it comes to evaluating indecent dressing.
