doyin13:

I think Sky Blue more than Kobo Junkie gets my argument.

I mentioned the importance of rigorous testing in one of my previous posts

Ability will still be the crucial factor in determining who enters the University regardless of means.

They might be a legacy of debt post graduation, but in such a system with the ensuing valued degree
the ability to pay back will be enhanced.

There is already a rigorous testing system when it comes to admission in to the schools. From the much I have heard of JAMB, I hear there has been great improvement and that is not the problem as we speak. But now, once they are in school, those who are not serious, can easily fail out. In a standard system , not all those who go in come out with degrees so I see no reason why we should deter them from entering if they meet the qualifications needed to do so. That is not the problem at all as we speak.

4 Play:



The question is whether too many Nigerians are going to University.With a literacy rate estimated at 57%,how can we claim that there are effectively too many people seeking an education?

My main concern is with the University system not with the general literacy rate.

4 Play:


It is not only the Nigerian University system that is failing to cope with the number of potential users.We haven't got sufficient tarred roads vis-a-vis Nigerian motorists,should we restrict the number of people who can drive?Even at Sec/Primary school levels,we face challenges,why not reduce the amount of people who seek to get an education in the first place?

Well guess what. The congestion charge in London does such a thing as advocate people not driving in an exclusive zone.

And I don't knw if you read my posts. . . .I said a liberal University education is wholly different from a rota learning of facts that
obtains in secondary and primary schools. . .In that respect I consider it a luxury or a 'special good/service'

doyin, again, the whole idea of a University degree being a luxury means exclusion of even more people. More people who cannot afford it but are very capable. Have you really looked at the Nigerian situation? There are a lot of poor people to put it lightly, and government is meant to cater to the masses. I do understand where you are coming from and i aknowledged that in my earlier post but i don't think that is the issue here.
4 Play, you are quite right that we don't have enough universities to begin with. There are many countries with not up to half the Nigerian population but have 10 times more Universities than Nigeria does. A genuine question though. We have an education ministry and an education minister. What is he doing and what are his plans to address the situation in Nigeria? I hope it won't be a case of having a minister who only sees his job as paying lecturers their salary on time (which they don't even seem to be good at), because there is much more to the Education ministers job than that. But in general, what has Yaradua's government got planned for this sector?

Build more Universities. . . .and have them employed where

na wa ooo.

doyin13:

Build more Universities. . . .and have them employed where

na wa ooo.

Now more than ever, NIgeria needs MORE EDUCATED PEOPLE,  not less,  Better still MORE HIGHLY EDUCATED PEOPLE. Not less people with higher quality education. NO. The Country needs more more highly educated people. So your luxury theory is light years away from meeting the need of that country as is. We do not have an effective workforce and to get to where we need to be, we need more people in colleges but colleges need to offer them better quality education.

If 1 million people go in and 750 thousand come out on the other side with quality education, that will be to the benefit of the country not to it's detriment.

doyin13:

My main concern is with the University system not with the general literacy rate.

Your point depends ultimately on whether there are too many Nigerians seeking or acquiring University education and there is clearly no evidence for that when we take into consideration many factors including a comparative analysis of other countries.

Also,in a situation where many countries have literacy levels of 90%+ with compulsory secondary school education.Add that to the fact that in many of these countries,a further 30%-50% of the populace go on to seek University education.How can one claim that Nigeria where only a minority fraction of the 57% literate population seek University education is producing too many University graduates?

Well guess what. The congestion charge in London does such a thing as advocate people not driving in an exclusive zone.

You can't simply lift ideas from the West without taking into consideration the unique local factors applicable to Nigeria.The congestion charge is justifiable in the UK when you take into consideration the actual numbers of cars on the road in the UK.

In London,the problem is not the supply of infrastructure but the demands on it.In Nigeria,the reverse is the case.Where else can you build more roads in London to cope with the increasing number of motorists?

And I don't knw if you read my posts. . . .I said a liberal University education is wholly different from a rota learning of facts that
obtains in secondary and primary schools. . .In that respect I consider it a luxury or a 'special good/service'

Since when did a University education become a luxury? A university education benefits not just the user but the economy generally.Luxuries by definition have little practical benefits.

doyin13:

Build more Universities. . . .and have them employed where

na wa ooo.

By analogy,why don't we keep the literacy rate down since few Nigerians are able to get jobs that require literacy?Why build primary and secondary schools when a lot can not find jobs that demand the use of the learned skills?

If you start seeing education,especially University education,as an investment instead of a "luxury" you will see that it pays for itself.

Looking at Nigeria,the North has far fewer University graduates than the South.I am yet to see how this has benefited the North compared to the South.

The question is whether too many Nigerians are going to University.With a literacy rate estimated at 57%,how can we claim that there are effectively too many people seeking an education?

not to argue or anything, but anyone who remains illiterate after going through primary and secondary school must be retarded. even abraham lincoln learnt how to read and write without going to school. i agree with doyins idea that more technical schools should be formed.


When I spoke of grants, I meant to help students who already have a problem paying the already high cost of attending schools or funding their needs in schools.

what if the grants can't still cover all their expenses. don't they have no choice other than applying for government subsidized loans??

There are a lot of poor people to put it lightly, and government is meant to cater to the masses.

how does getting a generic degree alleviate the problem of poverty?? most of these people with degree's are probably just going to elope to greener pastures.

bawomolo:

The question is whether too many Nigerians are going to University.With a literacy rate estimated at 57%,how can we claim that there are effectively too many people seeking an education?

not to argue or anything, but anyone who remains illiterate after going through primary and secondary school must be retarded. even abraham lincoln learnt how to read and write without going to school. i agree with doyins idea that more technical schools should be formed.


When I spoke of grants, I meant to help students who already have a problem paying the already high cost of attending schools or funding their needs in schools.

what if the grants can't still cover all their expenses. don't they have no choice other than applying for government subsidized loans??

I am speaking of REALITY in NIGERIA. Would you consider expecting this same nigerian government to come up with a subsidized loan program for students in that country a reasonable expectation??

well you do have a point. . . .perhaps we shouldn't have so many primary and secondary school students either

Like I have been stressing all along. . .i said the degree education should be held to a higher standard.

The situation in Nigeria is comparable to the one in the UK believe it or not. . . .

Every tom, privates and harry now sees University as a rite of passage.

You only had to attend one session of my class to notice how ill suited some of these chaps were to a liberal education.
Well when they bothered to attend.(One idiot used to rollup in my class )

Many of my class mates are in jobs they could have done with an A-level qualification.

And those with ability are forced to go a bit further to masters and so on in order to set themselves apart in the job market

The jobs that are immediately suited for degree holders are not numerous. . .so why force these people down this road

tax cut man like you should knw that we shouldn't hold back the able ten percent at the top in order to 'democratise education'

One size does not fit all.

A degree education is a luxury in that respects, not cost wise, but ability wise. . . .no be for everybody

and no dey use dictionary definition for me. such pedantry is annoying

I am speaking of REALITY in NIGERIA. Would you consider expecting this same nigerian government to come up with a subsidized loan program for students in that country a reasonable expectation??

a comprehensive financial aid program should involve loans and grants. i doubt the nigerian government would be able to afford it anyway since not much money is allocated to education. it would be cheaper to set up vocational or technical schools

bawomolo:

I am speaking of REALITY in NIGERIA. Would you consider expecting this same nigerian government to come up with a subsidized loan program for students in that country a reasonable expectation??

a comprehensive financial aid program should involve loans and grants. i doubt the nigerian government would be able to afford it anyway since not much money is allocated to education. it would be cheaper to set up vocational or technical schools

Well, if you looked at the grants idea, it is from the private sector and not from the government. There are grants out there to help students with needs. Both local and international programs exist that could help some but not all. However loans, which imply repayment at some time in the future, I would not prescribe for the Nigerian school system now or in the next ten years.

@poster

No there is no hope.  It is not in the cards this millenium!   Sorry, that's just they way God want's it.  

We are too selfish to care.

QUESTION:IS THERE HOPE?
ANSWER: THERE IS HOPE!

REASON: WE ARE THE HOPE WE ARE LOOKING FOR.

QUESTION: ARE YOU ANOTHER OBAMA IN LEKKI?
ANSWER: IF IT CAN HAPPEN ANYWHERE, IT CAN HAPPEN IN NIGERIA.

doyin, the UK government is actually trying to encourage more people to go to University not the other way round as you claim. I completely understand where you are coming from, like i have aknowledged before. But that has nothing to do with this. Not everyone owns a car but does that mean that the roads should not be maintained? Not everyone uses the airport, so i am guessing we should not maintain that either? You say quality education is a sort of luxury. Some medical students go through Nigerian institutions without ever using a microscope, but don't worry, at least they read a lot of books that were written 50 years ago. Is that 'quality education' ? Why do people sometimes suggest that we become miserly with luxuries we don't have in the first place? I don't see how education not being the path for everyone is an excuse for the appalling state of the Universities and education sector in Nigeria. What do you think?
bawomolo, sorry if you got the impression i said education is an automatic ticket to alleviation of poverty. It isn't, but it gives you that opportunity by equipping you with knowledge and skills which can be applied to the real world and be used to alleviate poverty. An example of this might be a Nigerian engineer, who understands the Nigerian market needs and designs a product which is in high deman for a Nigerian market. We have the money to pay attention to this sector so why isn't government investing heavily in such an important sector. bawomolo, again you said that anyone who goes through primary school without being able to read and write is retarded. So are you saying everyone that can read and write is educated? Government needs to invest in this and the fact that Katsina state had one of the lowest pass rates in the country under Yaradua's governorship of the state make me even more uneasy. We need to invest in education.

@sky blue

I knw the UK government has been encouraging more university attendance

The Conservative press are the ones I agree with. . . ,