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Lack of holistic approach to education, others hampering Nigeria advancement

By Isaac Adebayo Adeyemi
01 October 2015   |   12:51 am
There is no doubt, the education sector has faced series of challenges over the years. There has been a decline in the quality of service delivery, especially since the late 1980s.
Adeyemi

Adeyemi

There is no doubt, the education sector has faced series of challenges over the years. There has been a decline in the quality of service delivery, especially since the late 1980s. Although efforts are being made to inject more funds into the sector through Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), the emphasis has been on tertiary institutions for research, manpower development and improvement in infrastructural facilities.

Unfortunately, advances in technology especially in a knowledge- based economy, within the global setting, the rating of tertiary institutions has not been encouraging. This is further complicated by the state of our economy, human development index and poverty level.

Another critical factor is lack of holistic approach to education in Nigeria. As stated above, emphasis has been on tertiary education without much effort at improving quality at primary and secondary schools infrastructural facilities and learning environment. This is compounded, especially in recent years, with lack of motivation on the part of teachers, who are either poorly paid, or not paid at all for months. The consequences are grievous for the system.

Prior to the 1980s, technical education was a dominant feature of the Nigerian education sector. Currently, technical education is in comatose and needs to be revived.

As we forge ahead, curricula in tertiary institutions need to be strengthened, not only through entrepreneurial programmes, but also through exposure of students and graduates to acquisition of skills and professional certifications, and on the job training and retraining.

Prof. Adeyemi is Vice Chancellor, Bells University of Technology

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