Administration of Education and it Relationship to our
Society.
As per our nation’s current data, I
know not everyone has the grace to be formally educated. Our society constitute
of Literates and illiterates, whether rich or poor. What I mean is that the government’s
plan to develop our education system should benefit not only Literates but also
illiterates of our society, thereby decreasing the gap between the rich and
poor.
Effective Management of Our Education System
I define management as the efficient
and effective use of both human and natural resources to achieve an entity’s
set-goals which at the peak of good management is an offspring of education.
However, it will not be an exaggeration to say that there is a crisis at each
level of our Education system in Nigeria.
EFFECTS
OF ILLITERACY ON OUR SOCIETY
Illiteracy I define as the lack of knowledge
gained through education, whether Formal or Informal.
- Illiteracy breeds
ignorance which is evil. Educated individuals have been preventive of diseases
but an illiterate is less-concerned about the a-z because he is ignorant of the
results of such acts produce.
- Education has made our
world safer & peaceful, thereby aiding the electorate government to understand &
respect laws & order.
- Education has been
a source of knowledge & have answered some of mans how, what &
where? Because education as a process from primary to secondary to tertiary
& back to society will definitely answer some of our life’s question.
- Education as a form of
holiness, education encourages organization, orderliness, cleanliness which prevents
disease and is next to serving the Almighty God.
-Education will let us
identify difference between right & wrong, thereby aiding the nation’s
development.
Problems affecting the Nigeria
education system
1. Lack of good government & management: - this problem
dominate in many parts of the
system, which have with a crisis of leadership, administration & the problem
has strongly affected the growth & development of our education system. To grow the education
sector, all workers in any institution of learning should perform their tasks in a business- like
way & give adequate professional support to
their institution of learning.
2. Poor Quality of learning: - Our quality of learning have diminished
greatly over the years. I will say that this problem developed from the
management team of the education sector, some female teachers & their
supervisions have a love relationship & the male teachers offer bribe, all
these acts done to win over the supervisor not to give adequate professional support to such
institution of learning which negatively affects the development of the education
system and of the nation. Also the SSCE at the end of the secondary school is
the first external check on the performance in our school system,
the poor results of our student have rained heavily from the first external check S.S.C.E and Jamb between 2010
& 2014 has served us warning to the destruction of the education system
as a result of poor quality of learning.
3. Insufficient Personnel: - the rate of our teacher in most
communities of our country is
low. Most teachers have divided attention at a time, a person teaching up to
5-subjects, I’m very sure such individual can’t professionally handle those
subject, what he has is just an idea of the subjects, reads on it &
believes he is capable, I disagree. It is only a professional that handles a
profession. John Locke said “No
man’s knowledge here can go beyond his experience” and “that the mind is
furnished with ideas by experience” and education is a form of experience
4. Low teacher Morale: - A potent problem is the low teacher
morale, this problem is complex, because the causes differs depending on the problem of the institution. It is
obvious that the vulnerability of learners & teachers in our school,
colleges & other institution to crimes of Vandalism, carrying & using
weapon, drug-dealing & many forms of physical assault whether inside or
outside the gate of institutions. Such news creates insecurity & fear and destroys
the basis of learning community.
Indiscipline among workers
of the institution is a source of demoralization for discipline
workers of the institution who knows and does their job efficiently.
In conclusion. workers
(professionals ) at all levels may suffer demoralization if they are not
professionally equipped or resourced to cope with new demands that are being requested in-line with modern needs
of the nation. Poor learning is associated with poverty, bad or absent
facilities, under prepared teachers,
lack of culture of learning, teaching & service. The number of young
people who study mathematics with any degree of understanding has decline,
mathematical illiteracy is dangerous to our society & the pool of recruits
for further education in the information & science-based profession is
shrinking, a danger that couples grave
implication for Nigeria's future beyond.
Solutions
to the problem affecting the management and educational system of Nigeria
The overall responsibility
for the effective management of education system rests with the minister of
education. However, the following responsibilities should be dealt with by the
individual, society\community and administrators: -
1. The ministry of Education in all State of our great nation
should work cooperatively with the
federal ministry of education to study the problems affecting the system of
education in Nigeria
and work together to achieve the solutions.- Every year the State of our
Education System should be discussed by all Education stakeholders, taking
record of the collective progress/barrier in attacking the priority area of need, build
solidarity among the main actors in Education delivery and department while
pointing the way forward.
2.
Illiteracy
must be destroyed among adult and youth – how can this be achieved? Ministry of
Education should strategically use the available resources on how to destroy
illiteracy among adult and youths. In support of our illiterate citizens, invitations
should be open to any entity ranging from political, social, Education &
community to design a major programme that will tackle illiteracy and then make
facilities available to run it(the only way that organization can give back to their
environment). Some organizations don’t give back to the community at which
they operate despite knowing that they should & when they give they end up
giving the rich thereby increasing the gap between the rich and the poor.
3. Schools
must become centers of community life: - the school will truly become a center
of community & center of life if its facilities are used for community &
cultural life, for sport & recreation. An idle
building is a vulnerable place inviting vandalism. A busy school is a place the
community will protect because its theirs.
4. Make the learning institutions conducive for learning – a
learning environment is defined to be conducive when the structures,
environment and school’s fabric are of good standard. Thousand of schools in Nigeria have
poor physical fabric and many are dangerous for human habitation, hundreds of
schools have no water on site, no sanitation whatsoever or insufficient toilets.
I use this opportunity to press on the management at federal, state, and local
government to speedily address the dangerous and dilapidated schools, and
providing water and sanitation services
where they do not exist. To develop our education system, our priority should
be set in accordance with the needs of our learning institutions.
5. Developing the quality of our teachers - professional
development support services, the efficient provisions of learning and support
materials and the progressive elimination of in-human physical conditions in
schools will make a major impact on teacher’s morale and the quality of service
they render. In order to recognize outstanding teachers in all levels of the
system, the ministry of Education
should establish a national teacher award scheme, all these and other measures which seems professionally fit
will help to realign the identity of the teacher in Nigerian society which will
boost the quality of our teachers and student at all levels.
6. Approach to education – it is important to recognize the
damage which was done over the decades by the stereotypical approach to
education which do not allow for the development of the power independent
thought and enquiry. Outcome based education (O.B.E.) is an approach that embraces the capacity of
learners to think for themselves, to learn from the environment and to respond
to wise guides by teachers who value creativity and self motivated learning. I
am not saying that we should implement O. B. E. as the education system, but we
should review the current education system and compare it to other developed
country’s education system, then
analyze how to meet with the needs of our country through the approach to
education. It is fully recognize that the success of any standard system of
education is entirely dependent on the extent to which teachers are properly
prepared to facilitate it with understanding and the extent to which appropriate
learning support materials are in the schools, the availability of books in
schools is a vital ingredient in keeping cost down and keep learning up.
7. Creating vibrant further education & training system to
equip youth and adults to meet the social & economic needs of the 21st
century – as a bridge between general education and higher education or
employment, this is a vital sector for young people & adults whose formal
education has been cut short. This is an urgent need to review all educational
programs in the light of community social & economic needs in the 21st
century. Language programs, mathematics & science and information &
communication technologies are priority areas for review. It is important that
this program should be accessible to adult learners who were unable to continue their education because of
poverty or lack of opportunity.
8. Provide a system that will tackle Nigeria’s intellectual &
professional challenges of the
21st century – the country depends on education system to meet its high level
human resources need and to be the engine for the creation of new knowledge
& innovation & critical discourse. Our education system must produce a
safe & secure environment conducive to promoting the mission of teaching
& learning, scholarship and research and community service. Violence should not be tolerated; our school must be reclaimed as safe learning & living
spaces, particularly for women student.
In conclusion, the administrators, the society
& each individual must work together to build a Nigeria education &
training system for the 21st century, so that the country can develop &
grow into a developed country. To achieve this, unity should be encouraged
among the actors of such development.
THE FASTER WE ACT, THE BETTER IT IS. GOD BLESS NIGERIA, AMEN.