Education is Sacrosanct
Today, we join the whole world to celebrate the youths all over the globe in commemoration of the United Nations #WorldYouthDay.
It is an exciting moment for all of us at ImpactField Global Youth Initiative because today, our major target population (Youths) are being celebrated and the theme of the celebration is hinged on one of the core interests of our organization (Education/Literacy).
The theme, “Transforming Education” is an important and action-oriented subject for discourse and execution in such a time like this.
In our country of origin, Nigeria, there are over thirteen million young adults and children who are out of school because of circumstances revolving around location and funding admist other reasons. Most of them are seen on the highways and streets hawking, begging and sometimes, stealing during school hours. These young chaps are sometimes dying of hunger, destitution and nakedness.
It’s of paramount importance that the government officials look into this neglected aspect of the society and enforce policies as well as put into place structures that will enable most of these children to have access to quality education, not as a privilege but a right. It shouldn’t stop at the provision of teachers and school buildings as there’s also a need for a convenient and conducive studying environment in order to foster and boost efficiency in learning.
The government should carefully, and with a heart of humans, examine and restructure the public school system and ensure that students who pass through the Public school system would not be seen as less either because of their inability to measure up to standard or because of a chronic discrimination between the public and private academic sector. For the public sector, the government should ensure that qualified and dedicated teachers are employed. I would want to stress the two keywords here “qualified and dedicated”. In the public system, it has been proven that many educators are either lacking in qualifications, not necessarily certification, or dedication.
The government should also ensure that school buildings and facilities that are required for effective learning are in place. There are too many pictorial evidences of real life conditions of schools in Nigeria that would put tears in the eyes of a young person who understands that grooming the “leaders of tomorrow” in such an environment would only bring about a worse leadership in the future and breed unbalanced leaders.
However, this article is not meant to be one sided as I know that the dangers of a single story are enormous and always catastrophic. The government does not have a monopoly of responsibility of ensuring that education in Nigeria is transformed. The civil society organizations, the non-governmental organizations as well as the individuals have their own roles to play.
At ImpactField Global Youth Initiative (IGYI), over the past three years, since inception on the 12th of July 2016, we are focused on ensuring that education is transformed and this we do starting from our local base (Enugu State, Nigeria). Our portfolios and success stories can be accessed on our official website and social media handles. With the understanding that we have a responsibility to contribute our own quota to this transformation, the IGYI has carried out so many projects focused on promoting education and literacy. Some of these projects are carried out annually while some are either a one-off or community to community project. Through the initiative, over 12,000 students and youths have benefitted either directly or indirectly and over 4,100 reading texts distributed to schools, individuals and organizations free of charge. Scholarships have been awarded and so many gift items too. The aim is to set the pace as we transform the world by transforming education.
On the other hand, just as the Christian folks would always affirm that “the heavenly race is an individual race”, it is therefore worthy of note that the journey to a transformed education depends on the individual. And when majority of the populace of a country says “Yes” to education on a personal basis, then the dividends of such decision becomes visible and rewarding to such a society or nation. Mark Twin persuades that “A person who won’t read has no advantage over a person who can’t read”. This is a connotation that education starts on a personal conviction and it is when an individual has decided to transform himself through the illumination of education that he can transform the world.
In conclusion, education has little or nothing to do with the acquisition of certificates but is built on qualifications and competence. The knowledge of this statement of fact would save us a whole lot of inconveniences. We are transformed as we transform education from what it was decades ago to what works today.
HAPPY INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY.
Solomon Chimaechi Okeke (#Solospeaks)
Co-founder: ImpactField Global Youth Initiative
#ImpactField
#WorldYouthDay
#TransformingEducation
#UNSDGs
Written on the 12th day of August, 2019 in commemoration of the International Youth Day. Up