Education in Shambles: A Generation in Crisis

 

Photo credit: Chatgpt 

By Robiat Oladele 

I was scattered to pieces when the words of my 4 year old sister came running to me in the brightest light possible, “when I grow up, I want to become a lawyer.” Just only if she knew the people that had been trusted with the future she hoped to one day live in. In a nation where education is often termed as the foundation for national growth and personal development, the harsh reality experienced by millions tells a different story. Nigeria’s education system, once seen as the surest path to upward mobility, has now become a maze of obstacles, pain, and sacrifice. For the average Nigerian student, pursuing education is no longer a journey of integrity and empowerment, but one of survival, compromise, and persistent uncertainty. The cost is not only financial, it is emotional, mental, and generational.

Gone are the days when the former public schools were modelled after the British schools. There was no comparison between the elite and masses as all were integrated into one. After the colonial era, the public schools became nothing to speak of. The cracks in the system begin to show at the primary school level. In many public schools, classrooms are overcrowded, ill equipped, and understaffed. In rural areas, some children still sit under trees to receive lessons, writing on their thighs or on slates because there are no desks or notebooks. Faith, a 300-level student of the University of Ibadan stated how she could barely concentrate during lectures. “During my 100-level days, I could barely hear what the lecturer was saying because of how crowded the lecture theatre was. It was really terrible. If you are not there on time then you are on your own.” Qualified teachers are scarce, and even where they exist, they are underpaid and overworked. In an article by Nigeria Tribune, Academics Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) revealed that Nigerian lecturers are the lowest paid globally.

The basic learning environment is so poor that what should be a child's first step into literacy often becomes a lifelong struggle with learning gaps and frustration. Children grow up memorizing without understanding, promoted without mastering content, and by the time they transition to secondary school, the academic foundation is already weak and unstable.We now live in an environment where education is for those who can afford it, class gap now showing in another, we push for the decolonization of knowledge, yet we are enslaving our slave, average citizens now face the second phase of slavery.

Secondary school is no different. Many schools lack science labs, libraries, and even toilets. Students are often forced to contribute money to buy chalk, especially in public secondary school, “the golden face of Nigeria Education system”. Teachers teach multiplex subjects outside their expertise due to staffing shortages, while students prepare for national exams in environments that do not inspire learning. Those who attend private schools do so at great financial cost, while those in public schools are left to make do with far less. The burden is often on parents who themselves struggle to provide the basics, school uniforms, textbooks, meals, and transportation, often sacrificing other household needs just to keep their children in school.Yet they do not get value for their money 

University education, once the pride of the nation, now mirrors the systemic decay. Federal and state universities are plagued by frequent strikes, dilapidated infrastructure, and unending bureaucratic challenges. Hostel accommodations are inadequate and often unsafe. Water shortages, electricity failures, and overcrowding are everyday problems. Yet despite these failings, students are expected to pay exorbitant tuition fees and also numerous fees, from registration to development levies, departmental dues, faculty dues, and other compulsory charges, many of which are arbitrarily imposed without clear justification.

Getting educated has become a luxury. Many students now survive on less than N1000 a day, juggling school with work or small hustles just to buy food and data for assignments. Some take night jobs to survive, while others go hungry or rely on materials from friends. Those without financial support often drop out or stay endlessly in school due to unpaid tuition. Even for those who manage to scale through, their certificates no longer hold the same promise. There is no assurance that a degree will translate into employment or economics. Each university in the country produces nothing less than a thousand graduates, yet there are no employment opportunities for them. We now live in a society based on class rather than the quality of the certificate. This has discouraged the student from reading to understand rather they cram, our future medical doctors, lawyers and the likes now cram their slides just to pass their exam, just the degree no longer guarantees financial freedom.

Worse still is the post graduation uncertainty. The era of when employment is secured for those who are done with their educational programs have passed. The labour market is choked with unemployed graduates, many of whom roam the streets for years in search of opportunities. In a recent study by the National Bureaucratic of Statistics recorded that 4.18 million, denoting 6.5% of Nigerian youths (aged 15-34) are unemployed. Significantly speaking, 4.8% account for individuals with post secondary education irrespective of age. In a dialogue with Hannah, she expressed her concern stating how there is a gradual rot in the educational system. “Education has been depreciating because people have found other ways to make money. In the olden days education was a way out but these days it's not all that anymore First class fit dey sell puff puff. People feel once you have connections that's all you need but they forget once you're educated you have knowledge.People don't care about education anymore.

Jobs are scarce, and the few available ones are either underpaid, exploitative, or require connections, experience, or bribes. Entrepreneurship, though widely promoted, is not always viable in a harsh economic climate with poor infrastructure and zero government support. For every successful young entrepreneur, there are hundreds struggling in silence. The result is a generation that feels betrayed, sold a dream of success through education, only to wake up to a nightmare of unemployment and hopelessness.

The picture is bleak, but it is not beyond redemption. What is needed is a system  that prioritizes students' welfare at every level from classrooms to career development. Policies must be enforced to regulate tuition and fees, invest in infrastructure, and support struggling families. Mental health programs should be institutionalized. Curricula should be practical, market relevant, and skills based. More importantly, leadership at all levels whether governmental or student-based  must be accountable and transparent.

We cannot continue to glorify suffering as a rite of passage for students. Nigeria must decide whether it truly believes in the transformative power of education or whether it will continue to use it as a tool of frustration and disillusionment. If we fail to fix our educational system, we are not just failing a generation, we are dooming the future.