Empowering Education: Building a Brighter Future for Nigeria -By Tijjani Bulama

In Nigeria, most of the primary school leaving pupils are going out illiterate. It is possible for one to complete primary school but reading and writing is difficult for him. Only a few numbers of students can read and write. It is believed that primary school is the foundation leading to success in the education of a child.

According to United Nations Children funds (UNICEF) not less than 75% Nigerians between age of 6-12 who are at the elementary school stages are illiterate. Also the multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) IN 2021 survey revealed that only 26.8 of children at aged 7-14 years demonstrate functional reading skills. This results shows how our education system is going down if not properly tackled.

This days parents are reckless and neglect their children in guiding them to successive paths in their educational foundation. Instead of guiding their children’s education they are busy launching sites lights and movie station in their houses that has diverted the attention of children from engaging in studying. They end up watching television and playing with their phones.

Our basic education system need to be renumerated, more by government through deploying teachers who are qualified, well trained, competent and passionate to the available schools and build new ones. They should create rooms for the already existing teacher’s to be retrained or such through seminars and workshop partaining their various fields.

Also government should introduce new incentives methods for primary school teachers to empower with their jobs. Government should screen out teachers who are not qualified and provide top up wages/ allowances for the qualified and encourage them to continue their jobs without any draw back and ensure standard education for our young children.

Government officials should turn a deaf ear to the belief that in Nigeria ” it who you know, who knows you” meaning if you know anyone of high status or rank you’ll be offered the job even though you may not have the requirements. In Nigeria, there are people with ability and to carryout professional jobs yet they are ending up jobless because they don’t have connections with anybody.

On the other hand, parents should coordinate and control their children’s educational activities by guiding them in doing their homework and assignments. They should also checkup with school teachers and ask the teachers if they are doing good. They should draft home study timetable for them to engage more on studying than watching movies.

Teaching is a profession that needs some qualities and requirements in carrying it. When recruiting teachers government should deploy those who are trained with teaching qualities and are passionate in doing the jobs.

The former minister of Education Mallam Adamu Adamu said “Education is the bedrock of any country’s development and any country that does not educate it’s populace is bound to fail”. With that government should invest and re-standardise our primary education system to improve teachers standard living in other to bring development for the country.

TIJJANI BULAMA. From Mass Communication department. Borno State University