DEPUTY vice-chancellor, University of Ilorin, Professor (Mrs) Nike Ijaiya, has criticised Nigeria’s educational system, saying it promotes enslavement of the mind and examination malpractice.
Speaking at the 2016 graduation prize giving ceremony of Roemichs International Schools, Ilorin on Wednesday, Professor Ijaiya said that intellectual debates and individual presentations were limited in Nigeria’s educational system, adding that, “thus new ideas or critical thinking are severely limited.
“Nigerian educational system that emphasises completion of syllabus, objectives questions at expense of critical thinking skills, lecturing rather than group discussion, fixed chairs and desks, lecture theatres instead of loose sitting arrangement that are movable for group discussion and assignments can only promote regurgitation of facts presented by the teachers and examination malpractice,” she said.
Professor Ijaiya, who advised government and people to promote quality education above enslavement of the mind, said that deprivation, inflation, unemployment, poverty being complained about by Nigerians were not caused by increased price of petrol (PMS), adding that the problems were mere symptoms of a chronic disease called enslavement of the mind, “by the minority elite, of the ignorant and gullible masses who have resigned to their fate and rather than open their eyes wide enough to see things clearly would prefer to blame others and look for one man ‘messiah.”
The university don said that the country needed ideas to ‘fight’ enslavement of mind, adding that, “an educated person should not be gullible but critical in his thinking. We need unity, intellectual solutions to our national challenges and above all strict laws that will curb the cheats in our nation.
“Today, the world is ruled by new ideas and innovation. Youngsters across the globe are doing great things with technology. Can our students compete globally? How can they participate in the technological development rather than be consumers? Even when some have the ability and we have seen great invention by some youth in this country, but have our leaders given them encouragement to develop and patent them?”
The professor of Educational Psychology also called on government to return History subject to its past glory in the school curriculum, adding that it should also make Reading Association mandatory in all secondary schools.
“Education is the best investment and the foundation of any meaningful development and teachers are pivot around which its quality revolves. Unhappy teachers cannot deliver quality education as one can force a horse to the river, but cannot force it to drink water,” she said.