CHILD EDUCATION: WHAT IS OUR HOPE AT 50?

Rev. Fr. Leonard O. Anetekhai

In the next sixty days, Nigeria will be fifty years as an independent nation and I say Happy Anniversary in advance to my dear mother land. As a people with great passion for celebrations, we shall at least with the funds allocated for the celebrations roll out our drums, our attires in different colours and shades will rock the air, even our masquerades both political and spiritual will be on ground to entertain our guests from within and outside the country. The Nigerian Child whose future is never thought of except on paper and television screens will be compared to make march past and celebrate a troubled and ill society, they have found themselves.
In most countries, even in some African countries were some of our leaders send their children to live and study, there is that conviction that, every child has a right to their childhood a hopeful existence free of exploitation, violence, neglect, and extreme poverty. To experience childhood to the fullest and eventually develop into healthy, capable adults, every child needs good health services, consistent support systems as well as love, hope, encouragement and of value to him or her is good and quality education.
In 2009, we marked the country's 49th birthday against the background of stories about religious crisis, kidnapping, murder in broad daylight, election rigging, corruption and general anarchy. And these are still steering us hard in the face. The national mood is po-faced. Our country has been rebranded into a country of fraudulent bank CEOs and criminal debtors. The world used to talk about plain 419 scams, but we have now added political 419 and banking 419 to the national profile, thereby making our economy more porous. Today, we hear that the NNPC is insolvent and tomorrow they say it is not, who is fooling who? Nothing describes our failure as a country better than the woeful performance of our national football teams in the just concluded FIFA World cup in South-Africa.
It is disheartening to say that the world is passing us by and the only tool to face this challenge and reach an acceptable standard is not been given the required attention. With everybody chasing the shadow of money, and with the pittance sum invested yearly on education, how can the system produce the critical and creative minds Nigeria needs to guide and manage democratic system and survive as a viable nation, if the government continues to neglect her schools and the pride of her citizens - education? Agree or disagree, the lack of good education in Nigeria is the prime factor to many social ills and the break down in law and order in our society.
Without good education for the Nigerian Child now, we are sure of a blink future, except those in the corridor of power will live forever. Soon, very soon, the political landscape of Nigeria would be littered with illiterate politicians and the society would be incapable of gathering and maintaining a reasonable database for national planning and other development programs. To avoid this, our political leaders should begin now to re-order their priorities, as their priorities have so far been dictated by how much they will gain from any policy decision (by ways of contracts), and not how they will benefit the society as a whole.
As a society, we can only get what we have put into it, be it human or structural resources. At fifty, we must begin to change our value system and invest on education, which is the intellectual laboratory of any nation and the engine that propels the economy. For 'without a formidable intellectual base' it is not likely that any society will move forward. The government must invest more on the Nigerian child, to avoid future nuisance roaming the streets. As Rousseau will say, “People are amenable only when they are young; in old age they become incurable. Once (bad habits) and customs are established and prejudices ingrained, it is a dangerous and futile enterprise to try to reform them; the people cannot bear to have the diseases treated, even in order to destroy it, like those stupid and fearful patients who tremble at the sight of the physician”
Our educational institutions in general are in dire need, the most troubled and devastating one is the primary education sector. If we look around our primary schools in some local government areas in Nigeria, we begin to wonder if there are local government chairmen in those places. We find schools with no buildings of any type, just a sign post to show direction, classes are held under trees and even some with buildings painted with UBE inscriptions, are still waiting to be commissioned, when the Nigerian Child is suffering under rain and sun to learn. The quality of lectures conducted under these inhumane conditions will not be anything to be proud of and will never produce good result for the Nigerian child.
The need to improve higher education should begin with greater attention to our preschool, elementary, secondary, and vocational schools. These areas are the building blocks of society's educational foundation, as not everyone needs a university education to be productive in life. It is not enough to provide free primary education; the government should equip the school and train teachers to meet with the standards of our changing world. Also, the private sector should assist in the form of financial and material donations, and collaborate with institutions of higher learning to help the primary and secondary schools to improve their teaching standards, governance, and their community relations.
If Nigeria can not give adequate and quality education to students at the elementary and secondary level, the tertiary institutions would continue to be populated by those who are least prepared to face the rigours of university education. And 'cultism,' 'intimidation of lecturer into better grades', examination malpractice and other vices will continue to blossom in our institutions.
The year 2020, is ten years away (then we shall be sixty years as an independent nation) and there are no signs that we are ready to achieve a phenomenal growth in the areas of education. If the government provides or educates its citizens through functional education, embark on massive rehabilitation, funding and equipping of our schools in all stages and tiers of the educational sector, then the Nigerian Child will take his or her right places in social, political, economic and even religious well-being of our society and we shall endeavours to reach great heights and be among the world greatest countries by 2020.