Nigerian educational system: Varsity don identifies problems, solutions

A University don, Professor Sidney Osuji, has identified prolification of private schools as one of the major problems affecting the educational system in the country.

Professor Osuji who is the Dean of the Faculty of Education, National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) spoke at the weekend during a virtual summit of the Ezumezu Isinweke with the theme; “Structure of Education in Ihitte/Uboma, Current trends and resolutions”.

The Professor said, “To make it worse, we are still depending on the education system handed over to us by the missionaries. The few transformations we have had in the system are most of the times misdirected.

“For instance, we clamor for mass education and literacy to eliminate illiteracy in the land but our people abuse it. If you move from Onicha Uboma to Amainyi or from Nkumato to Abueke or Umuoma, you will see many private schools.

“Their mission is not to educate the people but to make money. This is why they employ unqualified teachers to make profit. While the pupils are given certificates at the end of their schooling.”

The Professor of Measurement and Evaluation went further to proffer possible solutions saying, “We must begin to re- think, redesign, retool and re- engineer our education system to focus and address specific aspects of our society’s life through which value and integrity for wholesome living is achieved.
The soul of our communities should be subsumed in growth and development based and through which the seat of knowledge is created.”

He said the higher institutions should have focus and that such focus should be directed to agriculture, science, technology, vocational training, among others.

“We should elect people who have the interest of our collective development into offices. Who will give us the type of Education that will give us knowledge, skills, values, morals, beliefs and habits to eradicate joblessness and idleness in our society.
We should elect people who should provide employment of the educated and not to give them rice.
You know that when wealth is used continuously and not created it will finish, but when learning is used continuously it continues to increase,” he said.

In his remarks, a Chairman of the Ezumezu Isinweke elite group Engr. Uzo Okafor appreciated the don for attending the summit, and the convener of the summit Cheta Ojukwu, promising that the programme has come to stay.

Ezumezu Isinweke Elite sociocultural group of Ihitte/Uboma LGA, Imo state is a welfare group that has Ihitte/Uboma as centrepiece of its policies.