EDUCATION: THE LOST LEGACY OF NIGERIA
Education is the legacy of every well-meaning
society; the impact of education on the society is beyond doubt a determining
factor on how well the society fare among its peers, in a country of 180
million people having a literacy rate of 52% and still declining and with real
educated rate at 24.4 %, this is no doubt a major setback. The foundation of
our educational system is faulty and if not fixed as a matter of urgency, this
nation will collapse in no time. This bug is a timed bomb waiting to explode. It
is wisely said that when you build mansions and refuse to build your children,
the children will ruin the mansions, with over 12.7 million children out of
school, Nigeria constitute 48% of the world out of school children, this
implies that Nigeria is educationally disadvantaged.
Nigeria as a nation have the resources to implement
free and compulsory standard quality education in all fairness across all
levels (primary, secondary, vocational, tertiary) but the reverse is the case.
Even though we operate a partially free basic education system, the standard
obtained is nothing to write home about. A sight-seeing tour of the 36 states
and 774 local governments in Nigeria
will expose you to the rot in our public primary and secondary education system,
from dilapidated buildings to less hygiene schooling environments, overcrowded
classrooms, lack of basic learning equipment’s, substandard teaching staffs,
obsolete and outdated syllabus, extortion of pupils/students by government
education agencies in form of fees and levies, lack of proper checks and
balance at instance where government or international agency release funds or learning
materials for educational advancement. All these have robbed us off the good we
can derive from the presumed leaders of tomorrow; worst still is the ever
increasing numbers of school dropout and even out of school children. It is an
eye sore when you drive round major cities and highways in Nigeria, you see
school aged children turned professional beggars, wind screen cleaners in
traffic, niche narcotic distributors, street hawkers, domestic labors, child
bride (teenage pregnancy) , store keepers while some just roam the streets
during school hours.
These out of school children, no matter the
circumstance pose a great danger to the society and nation at large because an
educated mind is a liberated mind (liberty from social vices). The out of school
children that have been exposed to several vices from tender age will grow up
and constitute nuisance to the environment, wreaking havoc on people from
pickpocketing to petty thieves , drug abusers, tout, political thugs and even
ganging up to form cult society, militant groups or terrorists (suicide
bombers).
To avert this looming danger and also take immediate
measures in reviving our ailing public primary and secondary education system,
drastic steps must be taken by all tiers of government. It is no more news that
about 48% of student’s fail WAEC exams yearly (do not attain minimum 5 credits)
and over 75% of those that passed WAEC were aided to cheat during exams no
thanks to our corrupt system where everything is compromised and all Mr.
Integrity has a price. If a student had passed WAEC in all sincerity, there
should be no need for JAMB or other competency test as a yard stick for admittance
into tertiary institution as obtainable in other nations. But since we are all
aware that the system is compromised, hence lack of trust across borders. It is
also pathetic to note that several state government that owes teacher’s salary
will find joy in disbursing bursary (which do not get to it actual targets) to
indigenous students within and outside the state institutions, in like terms
the state owned tertiary institutions are much more expensive to enroll as
compared to federal schools. To make matter worst some state governments as
part of their jamboree still sponsor students to study abroad when their state
owned schools are either on strike or poorly funded.
SOLUTIONS
1. Promulgation
and implementation of a new national schooling program (public primary and
secondary school) that will drive all school aged children back to school.
2. Establishment
of standard quality free and compulsory basic education schooling program for all
(a clue from awolowos model in the old western region).
3. Review
and upgrade of our primary and secondary school curriculum to meet with
international best practice standard as obtainable worldwide.
4. Increase
budgetary allocation, improve infrastructure, proper funding of our basic education
institute and constant supply of all learning materials needed for studying.
5. Eradication
of all forms of payment, levies and fees directly or indirectly in all our
government owned primary and secondary schools.
6. Disbursement
of free uniforms, textbooks, sandals and bags to all pupils/students (which is
a better option compared to the school feeding program).
7. Integration
of high end technological driven vocational and ICT studies into our primary
and secondary school curriculum.
8. Establishment
and accreditation of post-secondary school vocational/technical training
centers for students that do not desire to pursue academics further. (This is a
norm in Asian countries where skilled labors are certified and can compete with
their counterpart whom had gone ahead to study in tertiary institution), this
will also reduce the number of people seeking admission into tertiary
institution as a last resort for societal relevance.
9. Mandate
all military, para-military, police and corps to arrest, charge and prosecute
parents of children found defaulting/wandering around during school hours.
10. Recruitment
of more qualified basic school teaching staffs and training of existing once.
11. Incorporate
sporting activities into basic school curriculum, this will assist in
discovering genuine sports talent especially in age grade competitions and curb
the idea of age falsification.
If these highlighted points are well implemented,
the long term benefit will be a more secured, learned and technological
oriented society coupled with development of Nigerian technology (fabrication,
manufacturing and improvising). This will also curb the over reliance on
university degree rather than individuals ability, the issue of university degree
falsification will subside also unemployment and crime rate will be reduced.
I hereby appeal to all stakeholders and well-meaning
Nigerians to see from my point of view and act fast before this ticking time
bomb explode.
A certain generation of Nigerians parley
with the foreign ally to bring formal education unto this land, another
generation struggled for the independence of this nation, a further generation
fought for the unity and sovereignty of Nigeria. This present generation of
leaders I wait to see what legacy will be inherited from them.
TO:
Nigerian Senate, House of Representatives
Federal Ministry of Education
National Commission for Mass Literacy (NMEC)
Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC)
All State Governors and Commissioners of Education
All States Assembly
FROM:
Comrade Solomon Sunday Jacob
Education activist
Initiator, Education for All Campaign
Member, Education Right Campaign
08164693304 (SMS only)
We are the people that define the perception people have of our country. We have a responsibility to start re defining that perception. Will Nigeria be great again? Better ask will I be a great Nigerian? If your answer is yes, then you stand a good stead of believing in the future greatness of Nigeria. The least we can do as a citizen is to believe in the future of our great country.
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