Education for saving material culture: Challenge of promoting heritage education in a developing economy

Abstract

The concept of acknowledging and appreciating the value in items that reflect the past and the journey towards the present times are taken as a thing of pride and almost a national and natural philosophy in many parts of the western world. However the situation in developing countries such as Nigeria is so different that the conversations on methods and technology required to preserve heritage are far in advance of the basic issues here which border on the place of heritage in the scheme of things as promoted by governments and adopted by the people. This paper aims to discuss the issues that affect the promotion of the study of heritage issues from the perspective of university students. Methodology included focused interviews and questionnaires with the results suggesting a sustainable approach to an economically beneficial development of heritage consciousness.