Address the Sorry State of Basic Education in Nigeria

It is sad that every time you encounter Nigeria’s system, you are convinced that we will continue to play catch up to serious economic and innovation blocs of the world. It seems we will continue to feed off their progress, at great disadvantage to our own growth and development. Our efforts have never been about innovations or leveraging modern technology, but deepening the outdated models we have been used to while delinquently squandering the resources we could have deployed for innovative growth.

Last week I encountered one of such systems. I had a revealing insight into the basic education platforms (Primary schools) across some five states in the North West; Kaduna, Jigawa, Kano, Zamfara and Katsina State. At every point, I witnessed a system that was lavishly wasting its future and setting itself up for an eventual monumental implosion. This was done with no care whatsoever about the damage or any sympathy to lives or innocence of children. At every state, I visited at least two schools but in total, 14 schools. I will try to give a brief of the situation of schools in each and what the generic problems were, and then solutions.

In Kaduna, I visited two schools in Zaria just off the route to Kano. Teachers and pupils demonstrated enthusiasm and somewhat cosmopolitan outlook. I met the most confident set of students here, besides Katsina. But learning seemed mechanical, following through a rigid set of processes and routines, apparently in obedience to trainings received from donor funded initiative targeted towards teacher’s development, or the state curriculum. It was also a first sight at the learning environment pupils are exposed to. One word for it; APPALLING. Classrooms with torn ceiling dangling just above pupils and rusted or mangled roofing sheets sitting precariously on decaying noggins and wood. The Head Teacher even said that once it rains, school is closed. At another school in Zaria, cattle and herders invaded school fields and learning area with teachers demonstrating helplessness in stopping this trespass. Though Teacher capacity looked manageably decent, just as one would find in other places, learning environment received no attention.

In Jigawa, I visited three schools in Ringim, Gumel and Dutse. These were rural and semi-urban areas respectively. At Ringim, the school I visited had relocated to an old property previously housing a primary healthcare facility. The main school building was under renovation as it was destroyed by rainstorms. The nonchalance among pupils was evident. Teachers were laid back, did not display any application of initiative as pupils were being taught in dirty classrooms. Hygiene concerns were high, given the previous use of the facility and the very dirty toilets, with human waste and filth from God knows how long. The shocking fact was that there were brooms available to tidy the environment. This never happened until we came in and tried to demonstrate differently how things could be done. The school in Gumel was much better. But we became conscious of classroom hazards. Broken chairs and doors, metal objects including rakes and nail bearing woods, apparently fallen off from old chairs that littered the classrooms. Sitting arrangements were also an issue here as some pupils were seated with their backs on the teacher and no one had the initiative to correct this. This school played host to some College of Education students currently on teaching practise as well as N-Power appointees. They had varied classroom teaching skills, mostly at elementary capacity. The Head Teachers complained of damage to their classrooms by miscreants who slept in them; as there was no perimeter fence. Politicians use the school facility for rallies, leaving in its wake, huge damages with exorbitant repair bills…. well, mostly never repaired.

At the third primary school in Jigawa, only seven teachers were assigned to teach a whole school of over 1000 pupils. Here is the shocker; four of the seven teachers, taught either Islamic Studies or Arabic. The remainder shared Literacy, Numeracy and Basic Science among them. This is inclusive of the Head Teacher. Of course, pupils also had to contend with dingy classrooms and cratered floors. Most sat on the floor to learn or cramped on seats. Think of possible black Ant assault on their buttocks and imagine the level of concentration of these children.

In Kano, one would expect better with schools in the metropolis (Ungwan Uku, Hotoro), but kids were constantly exposed to risks within the learning environment. Pupils in Early Child Care sat on bare floors to learn; dusty, crated and cold cement floors. Most classrooms were over populated. In one school, we realised how poor attention is paid to children with special needs. There was just one teacher to attend to them; kids of varying ages. Their learning aids were locked up in a box without a clear idea in some instance of to make use of them. The teacher overseeing them even took responsibility of taking them home after school hours.

The situation in Zamfara calls for a state of emergency. Passive teachers, but pupils keen to learn, poor infrastructure, hygiene issues, teacher absenteeism. Yet amidst of all these, pupils wanted to learn. I witnessed two girls drawing very lovely flowery patterns on the floor and realised how much value this child could offer the society if properly harnessed. But this was after seeing a teacher happily eating away at his lunch on a table in the class with no care whatsoever to a classful of pupils, with no learning happening.

But the situation in Katsina somewhat assuaged my anger and disgust. Their situation, despite being far from ideal, showed semblances of a state with an idea of what to do with its primary education system. There was a standard primary school building model. I saw airy classrooms with decent structures to make it fit for a learning environment for humans. Learning mostly happened in Hausa but indeed pupils exhibited copious amount of knowledge. In fact, a pupil from one of the schools in Katsina had just won a national spelling competition and is due to participate in an international spelling bee. Katsina, should demonstrate to other states in this geopolitical zone what standards to aspire to, while working hard to grow its standards.

A litany of issues

Teacher shortage is the first thing that strikes you across all schools. With large population of pupils, schools and class sizes there is a clear need for more qualified teachers. In some situations, a teacher administers over 110 kids. In one school in Jigawa there are only seven teachers, four of who are either Islamic or Arabic teachers. Due to the shortage of teachers the Hausa and Arabic teachers teach other subjects rather poorly.

Another glaring issue is school management. Most Head Teachers showed poor grasp of their management roles to include ensuring that teachers and pupils attended school and that classes have teachers delivering lessons. Some of the classes visited had no teachers and the pupils were left on their own. In one instance, we asked the pupils if they wanted to learn and they said they wanted to learn “art”. We gave them materials and they drew airplanes, cars or houses and we asked them to write stories. Management also extended to ensuring a hygienic environment free of items likely to cause bodily injury. Across all the states, schools were littered with broken chairs and tables, farm implements in the class and chipped terrazzo or concrete floors, smelly toilets with no visible action to address the stench. The School in Hotoro had stench from the latrine covering the air. We had to get disinfectants to help neutralise the unpleasant smell.

Yet pupils continued to demonstrate huge motivation and desire to learn. One of the classes we took revealed the capacity of the learners to do a lot of self-study. They participated actively in word formation, story writing and storytelling. There was excitement because the pupils participated actively and enjoyed the experience. But teachers either underrate these kids or do not know exactly how to teach or engage in activity based lessons. As we were leaving one of the girls in the class walked up to my superior and asked for her name. She told her and she looked her in the eye, called her name and thanked her in Hausa. Then other pupils also called her name and thanked her and asked God to bless us and asked that we should come visit again.

Loss of learning time was obvious. Through so many holidays, lateness by pupils and teachers, absenteeism, learning time is eroded. Worse still the shift system that allows for loss of learning time during school switch over. On Fridays, they have barely 2.5 hours for the morning (8-10.30) shift and for afternoon (10.30- 12.30). we can as well rule off Fridays as a working day, since there is practically nothing reasonable to be done in two or three hours.

If all the points above are troubling, imagine what quality of learning one can get in a dirty, unhygienic school. School environments are unkempt with broken chairs and windows, poor sanitary conditions and torn paper all over the school compound. In one instance in Zamfara, we had to help remove slippery mud sludge that has caked up in front of a classroom. In Kano, we had to pay for disinfectants to be sprinkled around the toilet areas to help reduce the stench of human waste emanating from the lavatory area. No one to fix broken chairs and windows. School Management Committee (Parents Teachers Association) are hardly able to afford the cost of these repairs. But even more troubling is that costless activities also go unaddressed. Most of the pupils come to school without having a shower in days. Some have infection on their bodies, which could easily infect other children.

We tend to focus our attention only on teachers that teach regular classes without identifying teachers who teach children with special needs. What broke my heart was a visit to a class of learners with special needs at Ungwan Uku in Kano. The pupils have different needs, but all were attended to by one teacher. There were hardly any materials for the teacher to work with. The few available materials were kept in the school store. At the end of school, the teacher was seen escorting the most vulnerable of the kids home because no one had come to collect them. This teacher has no additional incentive for doing this but demonstrated the right attitude for the profession. We must support special needs classes in all schools so that we are seen to be not only be implementing inclusive education but also helping the most vulnerable. The special needs teachers can be provided materials to enable them to meet the needs of the learners.

In Zamfara, I witnessed the FG School Feeding programme and its was a mess to me. Only an early child care class was fed in a school of about 3000 pupils. I will leave the process to your imagination. But imagine kids who sit on the floor, a dirty one at that, being served with rice and beans, with no oil, eaten with the same dirty hands. The only thing I can say is that it is taking away valuable teaching time and has made plates more important than pencils and paper in schools.

Yet, despite all these anomalies, children remained curious to learn and showed off their enthusiasm.

Finding Solutions

We will need to consistently strengthen the teaching capacity of teachers to ensure they facilitate learning by demonstrating true activity based teaching. Head Teachers must organize after school meetings to ensure teachers prepare well ahead of a class and improvise teaching aids. I witnessed one teacher in Zamfara using pupils and counters to teach multiplication. This sort of approach engages the kids but also demonstrates with it is in practise. That way, they learn faster.

The good news is that the N-Power has hired and posted artisans to all local governments. I am hopeful that Education secretaries and SUBEB Chairman will identify the skills that the N-Power people have and use it maximally to the benefit of the school especially with regards to the repair of classroom furniture. They can fix the chairs, door and windows and paint all the faded blackboards.

Government must create a priority for learning infrastructure. Katsina offers a strong case study on how this can be done. I believe there is a prototype design for schools which must be replicated across all schools. Importantly, sanitation in school environment must be taken as seriously as quality of learning. Children by their nature are playful and will spread diseases once they catch them. It is unacceptable that schools are filled with bad odour coming from lavatories, or that classrooms are untidy, filled with sand or littered with broken chairs and windows. The cleanliness we preach must be demonstrated in practice.

We must continue to emphasise that children must not be flogged or asked to kneel during class time. Offenders can be asked to sweep the classroom during break or after school but not during class lessons so that they do not lose learning time.

Our schools need attention. If we neglect education at the basic level, we may have finished off any hope a child has for a better life. Families who cannot afford to pay for private schools must not lose quality learning because government schools are in a sorry state. We must all continue to advocate for increased investment into education and learning especially at the basic level.

This essay was developed with content from visits to states mentioned above. All opinions expressed are those of the author.