The Nigerian educational system has passed through some
facets. With the Tertiary level, being the zenith of this Britannic model of
education. Over the past decades, what has proved to be a subject of passion,
zeal, desperation and extremism in Nigerian Universities is the CGPA. Upon
admission into the University, the goal of every student is to graduate with a
FIRST CLASS. Majority of such dreams, more often than not, dies in the second year
into the University.
Obviously, the CGPA(Cumulative Gradient Point Average)
massages ego, it inspires smile and induces tears. Why does a decimal point
carries so much weight to an extent; people commit suicide for not making a
targeted Gradient Point? The society has made us to believe albeit erroneously;
that, not making a good CGPA means not making it in life. More worrisome is the
fact that; there is this delusion among many undergraduates that a '5.0' CGPA
will automatically earn you a wealthy life in the outside world. This is false
and quite delusional! Although, it gives you a cushion, but there is far much
more needed to navigate through the storm of the outside world.
Fundamentally, the Nigerian Educational System can be
likened to a Zoo, where the Zookeeper in a quest to test which animal is the
strongest, gathers the Antelope, Giraffe, Monkey,Lion and Tiger and declares
thus : "whoever climbs the tree first is the strongest animal in the
Zoo". Surely, the monkey will win under such circumstances but the monkey
is no match for the Lion or even the Tiger. Given this analogy, it therefore
appears that in every society; where there is no equal level playing ground,
any result produced from any contest is bound to be distorted as it lacks the
fundamentals of a true competition. In this light, not everybody is made for
the Nigerian University System. Some are better off as fashion models,
musicians, technicians, photographers, craftsmen et all. These people and their
ilk are meant to be in special skill acquisition and development centers and
not in a place their talents doesn't belong to and thus, may never be maximized
in such an environment. Admittedly, the basic knowledge and usage of English is
a prerequisite to make headway in a British colonized country like ours. This
can however be achieved outside the four walls of the University. English
studies, etiquette and soft skills(which are not even taught in the University)
should be incorporated into the syllabus of such centers. This is how it is done
in the Western world.
Instinctively, there are three categories of students in
Nigerian Universities. The first being the so called "book worms or
scholars". The second being the "average or normal students" and
the third category being a conglomeration of misled elements, who surely have
no business in a sane University Environment. After taking a deeper
observation, I pointed out other group within these categories. Time won't
permit me to digress that much but these observations will be integrated into
the analysis of the larger groups.
Using the overemphasized CGPA as a yardstick, the first
category, to be frank, are predominantly students whose cgpa falls between 4.4
to 5.0(on a scale of 5.0). These are the revered 'geniuses' on our campuses.
They are the 'living and moving books', as the society has taught us to
believe. However, there is something paradoxical about this category of people.
Many of them are aided by the way the system is structured and their academic
success is not necessarily a product of invincibility. The system has made
little room for innovations but it has rather strongly maintained a high level
of conservatism. The system also encourages cramming. Hence, a student who
crams a lecture note and gives it back to the Lecturer; verbatim in the exam is
more likely to have a distinction than a student who made an indepth research
or even have a better in depth knowledge of the course.
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There are empirical
facts to back this up. The reason being that, most lecture notes images the
sentiments of a Professor about a concept or topic. Once a student toes the
same path in answering his examination question, he will be on the same
wavelength with the lecturer who would then key into his answers. Most times,
when students go 'too deep' into a course by unraveling so many things that
were not
taught in class and flaunts such 'new knowledge' in his answer
booklet, such students are most likely to get a C. The 'verbatim givers' are
much more likely to have an A. Little wonder why some students can read a
singular course material 10times before exam - the system rewards such
approach, the verbatim givers, I choose to call them. I do not hold any grudge
against the 'genuises', what I find quite bewildering about most of them is the
tradition of studying the same set of materials from the beginning of the
semester till the end all under the auspices of getting As. Why should I study
a course material(which was probably used by the ancestors of my department)
all through the semester? This is very crazy. A high CGPA without the
initiative to solve societal problems is a WASTE. I once met a Frist Class
student from the University of Ibadan who can recite all the theories of Karl
Marx, John Locke, Aristotle, Plato, Voltaire and others.
I was stunned and mesmerized
by such enormous knowledge. However, when I challenged this great friend of
mine to apply all his knowledge towards proffering a solution to a national
crisis I posed before him, he stuttered. His initial eloquence that poured out
the theories suddenly went into oblivion. Apparently on paper, he is a genius.
But in practice(the most important aspect), he evidently appears to be
impotent. If the materials you study doesn't propel you to 'think out of the
box', my brother, shelve them and go on a journey of self discovery. I've seen
so many 'scholars' who starts a sentence with "Am", who does not even
know when to use "Have and I've". Some can't even properly spell the
basic things related to their course and you begin to wonder how they attained
such Cumulative Gradient Point. Truly, no man is an island and everyday, to me,
is a new day to learn new things. However, when you dedicate all your time on
pursuing a singular goal, you are very much unlikely to learn anything new in
life, other than the materials, you've confined your brain to. The University
is not a place to pursue a singular goal. It shouldn't be a one-way traffic
where all you pursue is "GP, GP, GP, GP! ". The outside world will
demand far much more than that 'decimal point' you hold high like an oxygen.
Self development they say is the key to greatness. The greatest and richest men
in the world barely graduated with a high CGPA. In fact, they even dropped out
of the University. I'm talking about the likes of Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg.
What makes them great was their ability to identify a societal problem, think
about a possible solution, expand great possibilities and here they are today.
Problem solvers mostly ends up being the greatest acheivers. Are you investing
in yourself? How well do you spend your time? Do you spend all your day
clinging to your books? My brother, you are not an undergraduate if all you do
is to romance those books - 24/7. Being an undergraduate is an
opportunity to
explore other possibilities apart from your academics, it is a time to learn
new things, discover your ever changing world, meet new people, network and if
possible, learn new skills. How often do you learn new things? By new things, I
do not mean the next topic on your course outline. No. I'm very much far from
that. Rather by new things, I mean : the needed soft skills, continuous
improvement of your communication and public speaking skills, understanding
your ever changing world and how you intend to navigate through the stormy way
to your career.
The world is changing. The society now demands much more
than CGPAs and similarly, academic brilliance is not just enough. We are in a
century Professor Lanre Fagbohun described as a "century that abhors
excusiologists but instead promotes the deep thinkers - problem solvers.
According to him, it is a century of CLASH OF IDEAS".
The thing is, in the labour market, there are thousands of
four-point(4point) graduates. In fact, majority of Covenant University
graduates made either a First Class or a 2'1. What will distinguish you from
the crowd won't be your result but rather your ability to understand, analyze
and proffer intelligent solutions to problems. A good result surely gives you
an edge, but it's not just enough. Personally, my best moments as an undergraduate
have proven to be a product of self development and deep thinking, with little
or no attachment to the decimal point on my DPU profile. The only attachment it
appears to have is the fact that I've never allowed it to be on
warning/withdrawn. Thus, maintaining my studentship in LASU. Surely, I do not
celebrate mediocrity. In fact, as an undergraduate, who knows the reasons for
being in the University, your CGPA - no matter how political, religious or busy
you are, should NEVER fall below 3.4 or at worst, 3.0! Anything short of that
is most likely a lack of seriousness and misplaced priorities. Although, I also
do not particularly blame the people that are even below 2.0. The reason being
that : many of the students in the
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University have no business in the
University in the first place. Many would have been better productive as
photographers, event planners, musicians, technicians etc after leaving various
skill acquisition or training centers (as I mentioned earlier). Some are even
born business men and women. Meanwhile, even majority of the ones that have the
traits of a typical undergraduate are studying courses they never dreamt of
studying. Hence, the whole system is distorted. There is no equal level playing
ground. Apparently, there is a need for a rejig and review of the nation's
curriculum.
Notably, high CGPAs boosts chances of gaining scholarships
and Postgraduate admission into the likes of Harvard and Oxford University. It
must however be also pointed out that self development, extra curricular
activities, politics(student leadership) also plays pivotal roles in gaining
admission into the ivory league Universities as well. Oxford University for
instance, doesn't admit based on high CGPA alone. A check on their website
shows. Likewise testimonies from their graduates. In fact, they highly rate
potential post-graduate students who involved actively in extracurricular
activities, student leadership and those who also participated in various
competitions while they were undergraduates. It is never a one way traffic.
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Consequent on the foregoing, I hold no intention to hurt the
feelings of anybody. Rather, I intend to awaken the consciousness of my readers
to their ever changing world. The world keeps transcending and it's really
disturbing when I see many people pursue a singular goal as undergraduates.
More stinging; is the reality that your stay in the University is also very
short. Shockingly, some live it as if life ends in the University. The 4 - 5
years is nothing. Before you know it, you are already out of the system -
facing the shock of the outside world. Most Importantly, I do not intend to
portray myself as an invincible or immortal human. I make mistakes and fail
virtually everyday. . But, I learn from every moment of my life. The primary
goal of this article is to bring to the fore : the little experience I've had
and what I've also learnt from other people. Having a massive CGPA is good, it
gives you an edge to some extent. However, it is never a free meal ticket in
the outside world. Finally, graduating with a First Class is great, but going
through the rigors of self development,deep thinking and networking makes you a
quintessential graduate.
Best wishes...
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