Vivian Onyebukwa
Baiyewu Folusho Anthony is the Director, King Emmanuel Progressive College, Ayobo, Lagos.
In this interview, he shared his views on some issues confronting the education sector in the country.
What’s your view on quota system, catchment area, and discriminatory cut off marks approved by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and universities for 2019/2020 admission exercise?
The quota system, catchment area syndrome and discriminating cut off points approved by JAMB and universities for admission of candidates is an offshoot of the Federal Character provision. Apart from lowering quality of candidates offered admission, it also vitiates the standard of output from such a system as the saying in computer parlance ‘Garbage in Garbage out’. Instead of being a centripetal factor it will divide us and tends to be discriminatory which doesn’t make for a united, cohesive and detribalised nation. At a very early age concept of tribalism and ethnicity is injected into their consciousness.
Social vices such as cultism, drug abuse, homosexuality, and others have cut short the destiny of several youths in the society. What is responsible, and how can this problem be solved?
It is a reflection of societal ills and the fact that parents have failed in their responsibility towards their children. They don’t have time to monitor their children due to economic and social pressure in the society. The ideals of society are faulty. People now see what is bad as trendy. Godliness and righteousness have been sidelined. Some parents belong to confraternities which make a negative role model and hence their offsprings see nothing wrong in these societal ills. Rewards for entertainment celebrities are more handsome than for academic excellence and moral rectitude. Moral instructions should be restored to the school curricula and the fear of God which is the beginning of wisdom must be emphatically preached. Righteousness exalts a nation but sin is a reproach to her. Empowerment of youths should be mandatory as the idle hand is the devil’s workshop. Legislation to discourage social ills must be reviewed to enhance enforcement.
In Nigeria, more emphasis is placed on the acquisition of university certificate without necessary skills. What is your take on this?
The Nigerian society assesses people by the strings of certificates obtained and not by the relevance of the certificate to value generation and productivity. In other climes, passions of individuals are discovered, encouraged and developed from pre-high school level. As they grow up the ladder, their innovative tendencies and potentials are developed to the fullest. The negative emphasis on certificate has indeed encouraged all forms of examination malpractices and certificate forgeries which we experience in the society today. Our pool of skilled resource is diminishing as there is no deliberate replacement of old hands. The virtue of hard work, honesty, diligence has been thrown overboard. People purchase certificates like a commodity in the open market.
Reading culture is dwindling in Nigeria. What is responsible, and how can it be tackled?
The three tiers of government have no deliberate policy to establish public libraries, where there are spatial distributions. They are ill-equipped with books on biographies, history, literature, science, etc and obsolete textbooks. There is a dearth of authors as books to broaden the spectrum of potential readers.
Also, the IT and the craze for social media have distracted the attention of Nigerians youth from reading books. They engage in browsing, chatting all night and have little or no time for reading. Schools should encourage students to read a number of books per term. Government at all levels should provide functional libraries equipped with e-library and promote a good reading culture. Non -governmental organisations should not be left out.
Exam malpractice is on the increase as some parents and teachers aid this menace. How can it be curbed in schools?
The machinery of exam malpractice syndicate should be dismantled forthwith and merchants of this vice should be dealt with. This ugly trend can be fought against if examining bodies do not rest on their oars to ensure that they monitor exam processes properly. Parents should be re-oriented through awareness programs on the dangers of exam malpractice: That there is no short-cut to hard work, it is better to prepare the child for the road and not the road for the child. Existing laws should be enforced and law enforcement agents should be made to wake up from their slumber.
What can be done to improve the standard of education?
There is a need for government to review the school curriculum to reflect the reality of modern trend. They should increase budgetary allocation to education which will address the issue of dilapidated infrastructures and teachers development. More so, they should empower its officials to monitor exams, and accreditation exercises closely in educational institutions. I also advise the government to reward individuals and institutions, who are fighting against exam malpractice and prosecute schools and individuals found guilty of exam malpractice without fear or favour. We can reduce our problems in education by applying new thinking and leveraging on technology such as mobile phones and broadband internet. The mobile phone can be used for education and learning in addition to other uses. Education via mobile phone will improve access to quality education. Students can access online lectures, games, tests, and self-assessment.