Educational System in Nigeria Problems and Prospects

This paper examines the problems and prospects of education in Nigeria. Education is the bedrock of development. But unfortunately Education in Nigeria is bisected with myriad’s of problems. These includes; poor funding and thus poor educational infrastructures, inadequate classrooms, teaching aids (projectors, Computers, Laboratories and libraries), paucity of quality teachers and poor / polluted learning environment. In addition to these inadequacies, our school system is plagued with numerous social vices such as examination malpractices, cultism, hooliganism and corruption. For meaningful development to take place in the educational sector; the government need to re-address the issue of funding. Private educational investors, teachers! Parents/guidance and students/pupils need a reorientation towards achieving the goals of education. Also education must be made affordable for all and sundry. The current monolistic approach to knowledge acquisition must be changed. Technical education and innovation/ adaptation centers must be encouraged and well funded, if this nation must move out of this present technological and scientific dependence. Government and the organized private sector must as well fund research programmes, inventions and mass production of invented products. L. O. ODIA AND S.I OMOFONMWAN 82 PROBLEMS OF EDUCATION IN NIGERIA Poor Preparation and Malpractices Experts in the education sector has been able to identify examination malpractices with poor preparation of students for an examination, and lack of self confidence. In view of the rising costs of education (school fees, enrolment fees, cost of books and other materials) students and even their parents will not ordinarily want to be held back by any form of deficit or failure in any of the required subjects, hence will go to any length to ensure success. In some cases, some teachers at the secondary school level are involved by way of encouraging students to contribute money (cooperation fees) in order to secure the needed assistance during such examinations because they, the teachers are left with no other alternative considering the fact that they are aware of the inadequate preparation of their students as well as the lack of facilities to get them properly prepared before examination. Interview with 50 school heads in Benin City, reveals that more than 50% of our secondary school students on annual basis choose to enroll and write their final year external examination in schools in the interior and some private schools where they are very sure of success at the end of the day. In 1996, the military government in Edo State sent home secondary school teachers that have served 28 years and above as well as those that were recruited in 1991 and after, few weeks before final year examination. Some schools were left with one teacher and a security man. And a near replication of same happened in the year 2000, this time for those that have served 28years and above. This is how the government indirectly legitimized irregularities in schools that is today unabated. Today the paucity of teachers in our secondary and primary schools, indicate that the state is yet to fully recover from this shock. (Omofonmwan, 2001 ) Between 1999 and the year 2000, the Bauchi State Government terminated the services of teachers who were non-indigene from its teaching services. A situation which resulted in acute shortage of teachers in virtually all schools in the state without a prior provision for replacement. Same practices have also been observed in some other states of the federation. In a similar vein, Zamfara State government in the year 2004 imposed fees on students that is not only religious and indigene-ship bias, but also gender discriminatory, such discriminatory educational policy hampers the quest for goal attainment in both educational and national development. Efforts of state government like Bayelsa and Ebonyi, since 1999 towards overhauling and speedy transformation of its educational system from the primary to the tertiary level as well as sponsorship of its indigenes for oversea educational programmes and payment of students examination enrolment fees should be recognized, applauded and emulated by others. Exploitation and Educational Standard A close assessment of activities in schools have revealed that, students are made to suffer undue amount of exploitation by school heads at both private and public schools in the name of enrolment fees and assurance of success in their examination and this they do in collaboration with the ministry officials who are suppose to inspect and monitor activities in schools to ensure standard compliance. Despite the fact that most of the schools lack basic learning facilities and a complete set of teachers, in some cases, a school with the services of an English Language teacher will lack that of a Mathematics teacher. This is the more reason why one may not have the gut to quarry the mass promotion syndrome been practice in schools because the system itself is not balanced. In like manner, students are being surcharged in a number of ways in tertiary institutions either in the name of dues that are not accounted for, force purchase of reading and other learning materials at exorbitant rate or on services of which staff are being paid for as assigned responsibility and official provision made by the respective institution. All these lead to lowering of the academic ability of students. Orientation and Educational Standard In view of the prevalence of examination malpractices and other related irregularities in schools at all levels this day, the interest and habit of reading, procurement of books and other skills development materials has drastically dwindled among a number of students. Interview with 50 secondary school heads of both public and EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IN NIGERIA PROBLEMS AND PROSPECTS 83 private, sampled in Oredo and Uhunmwode L.G.A, Edo State and 30 senior faculty members from five universities namely Uniben, AAU, Delsu, Unilag and Abuja coupled with a study of 500 students randomly sampled from 50 secondary schools in Benin City and 300 students from 3 universities reveals that, the two areas of main interest to growing number of students now are: fashion and influencing of examination results “Blocking”. Thus, portraying the educational system more of glamour to real learning and skill acquisition by prospective students. This trend is also observed to have close relationship with rising sexual promiscuity among students Poor Parenting /Guardance Parenting, entails caring, protection, guardance, provision of basic needs for a child up keep in order for him or her to be properly equipped to meet with the challenges of life, in accordance with the laws of the land. In desperation, many parents have decided to bring in additional innovation by way of not only involve in encouraging, but also finance activities in and around examination venues to effect malpractices in order to brighten the chances of their children or wards in qualifying examination to higher institutions and some even progress on this act through the tertiary level of education. Interview with two sets of university students from various departments engaged in clustered group discussion revealed that their parents influence over their choice course of study has negative effect on their level of performance. In early 1998, during the 45th meeting of the National Education Council (NEC) held in Kastina, the then Minister of Education in an address stated that this submit is to allow stakeholders in the education sub-sector and “Those who do not now know the extent of the rot in the sector to sit and parley with us in order to understand what has gone wrong with education in Nigeria” He further added that I believe that if Nigerians who matter know exactly the trouble which education is passing through they will be shocked to their marrow because Nigeria’s education has reached a level, which deserves the declaration of a state of emergency (Birma,1998). In this regard, conscious effort is needed by all the stakeholders in the educational sectorGovernment at all level, school heads and teachers, parents and students to bring this observed abnormalities to normalcy – poor education breeds indiscipline and indiscipline is the bane of the Nigerian society today and calls for restoration of a proper academic culture in Nigeria. Poverty and Fall in Standard Acquisition of Education knowledge is supposed to help us fight against-poverty, ignorance and disease. The process of acquiring this well desired knowledge has gradually turned money spinning venture for many of those in dire need of the knowledge and skill. It is now a source of exploitation from the service seekers with little or no consideration for quality of service rendered and facilities on ground, and made an offer for the highest bidder. A trend which has cut across all levels of education, from nursery school to tertiary institutions. The concept, “poverty”, refers to a situation and process of serious deprivation or lack of resources and materials necessary for living within a minimum standard conducive for human dignity and well being (NEST, 1992: 16). Admission and being in school today is merely an ability to pay what is demanded in monetary terms by school operators and not on what could be offered academically. And this in essence widens the scope of poverty prevalence as well as the gap between the rich and the poor which education is designed to bridge. Little wonder why graduates from many of the institutions exhibits ignorance towards societal realities and lack of creativity, due to the inadequacies associated with the learning and training process which is also observed to be partly because many of those that offer this service do so with greed. PROSPECTS OF EDUCATION IN NIGERIA The Need For Research Development Every one who cherish genuine growth and sustainabl