A reflection on the standard of education in Nigeria.

[FMINigeria]

By Daniel E. Ejodamen

President Goodluck Jonathan flakned by Governor Aliyu Wammako of Sokoto State and the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa'ad Abubakar III watched with Governor Saidu Dakingari of Kebbi State and others watched as the President cuts the tape to commission the Almajiri Model School, Gagi, Sokoto. At a point in time in Nigeria, formal education which our fore-fathers enjoyed so well, especially during the colonial era in terms of standard and discipline soared. Nigerians embraced enlightenment, knowledge and considerable civilization. During that era, anyone who acquired certificate at the end of formal training could be sure of getting a commensurate job.  A school certificate holder could perform the tasks expected of a true school certificate holder because such certificates were truly and genuinely acquired, they reflected true knowledge acquired and ability and the jobs were readily available.

Apart from primary school certificate that was honoured for being an evidence of someone having undergone a formal education, secondary school certificates as well as certificates from various tertiary institutions were held in high esteem.

In 1960, Nigeria got her independence from the colonial masters.  This implies an opportunity for Nigerians to administer fellow Nigerians; or when juxtaposed further, can translate to Nigerians having the opportunity to manipulate fellow Nigerians and available resources for selfish ends.

One thing led to the other.  The education in the immediate post colonial period was still such to be reckoned with in terms of standard.  Similarly, the people who belonged to this era did not throw discipline, moral values and general comportment to the wind.  Instead, they upheld these good virtues and much more towards the good of the individuals and the country at large.

Let's pause a while, and ask a pertinent question.  How do we appraise the standard of education at present?  Some Nigerians have claimed that the standard of education in Nigeria has fallen. However, some experts have argued that it is not actually the standard of education in Nigeria that has fallen, but the performance of individual student candidates.  It can be argued also that there is a relationship between the performance and the standard of education in Nigeria.   This is because the two phenomena are interwoven and over-lapping; and of course, difficult to separate when being considered.   However, we need to know that to score an A in West African School Certificate Examination, candidates need to score 70+ and this has been the case since the examination body was established just as it is when a candidate is deemed to have failed when he or she scores below 40 marks.  The standard was set and it remains, it is the delivery of teachers and performance of students that vary should be questioned.

It is true that there are some identified or unidentified problems that are ravaging the entire framework of the educational system in Nigeria.  Of course, the government and every stake holder must make conscious and concerted effort to tackle all these forms of educational problems in Nigeria. It is only when a holistic approach is adopted towards solving such problems of education; Nigerian students, graduates or even most educationists would not be able to compete favourably with their counterparts elsewhere outside Nigeria's boarders.

Complete view of the Construction and Furnishing of Lecture Hall - College of Education Akwanga Education in Nigeria leaves much to be desired in spite of the huge budgetary allocation to this sector of the economy by the Federal Government.  This problem could be traceable to the point of implementation of such budget.  Research has shown that poor learning condition is a key problem that exacerbates poor performance of students, standard of the school, and in fact, the entire facets of educational sector.  These problems of public schools are the reasons for setting up of private institutions, where unfortunately, we find lots of sub-standard ones.  Sadly enough, some of the private schools find it difficult to resist the temptation to cut corners by not adhering to given curriculum; and the result is garbage in, garbage out.

One of the problems that are waging war against educational sector in Nigeria today, is the high cost of sponsorship which is highly exorbitant; and as such becomes difficult for everyone to afford.  Due to high rate of poverty in the country, the effort to attain formal education by a considerable number of Nigerians to an appreciable level has remained a tall dream.  As the cost of education is increasing, so also is the level of poverty among the people.  The private schools that are increasing in number in the country today are not for humanitarian purpose, but to maximize profit. Most of these private schools are cashing in on the inadequacies of public schools to exploit unsuspecting members of the public.

"Restoring excellence in education" forms part of the transformation agenda of the present Federal Government of Nigeria.  Perhaps, the quest to restore excellence in the educational sector in Nigeria is simply an observation of the fallen performance by the present administration under the leadership of Dr Goodluck Jonathan.  This is kudos to Mr President.  No doubt, the educational sector has started to receive unprecedented attention by the Jonathan administration. Since inception, for instance, the present administration has implemented a new national secondary curriculum.  That is not all.  It is also on record that the Jonathan's administration has made the highest budgetary allocation to education in the 2011 budget and also the second highest allocation in the 2012 budget in comparison with the immediate past regimes.  In a deliberate attempt to restore excellence in education, the present administration established nine new Federal universities in Kogi, Ebonyi, Nasarawa, Gombe, Taraba, Katsina, Jigawa, Ekiti and Bayelsa States.  Judging from opinion survey, it is the belief of many Nigerians that the present administration is prepared to continue to listen to constructive criticisms towards the realization of a better educational system.

Daniel E. Ejodamen writes in from the Federal Information Centre, Benin.

Editor's note:  Views expressed in this write-up do not represent the view of Federal Ministry of Information or those of the editors of this website; they are the views of the writers.

Via: Federal Ministry of Information (FMI) Nigeria