The Ministry of Education's obsession with age is misplaced
In the past, the educational system in Nigeria provided one of the best in the world. But the sector is now fraught with problems, all self-inflicted. The entire educational landscape Is dotted with schools without books, equipment and competent teachers. At the tertiary level, the tell-tale signs are the products - largely unskilled, unproductive and unable to compete with their peers elsewhere. The crisis of tertiary education in Nigeria is better appreciated by the large number of our young citizens trooping to neighbouring countries within the West African sub-region to earn degrees. Amid these challenges, the priority of the current Education Minister, Tahir Mamman is age qualification for tertiary institutions in Nigeria.
Last week, Minister of Education, Tahir Mamman announced the federal government decision to ban students who are under-18 years from sitting for the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate (WASSCE) examination, and the National Examinations Council (NECO). Both are crucial for admission into tertiary institutions. The federal government, according to Mamman, has instructed WAEC and NECO to enforce the directive that has stirred an outrage across the country. Mamman had earlier stated that the age limit for any candidate intending to write the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) organised by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) remained 18 years. It would have taken immediate effect but for the loud opposition by stakeholders at the JAMB admissions policy meeting. The decision was therefore grudgingly shifted to 2025.
Describing the policy as absurd, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said it is a disincentive to scholarship and "belongs in the stone ages." Chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Afe Babalola, SAN, argues that it flies in the face of university autonomy. "We do not forge with our own hands the chain that will hamper the development of our gifted children", Babalola said. "University autonomy includes among other things the discretion to waive the minimum age requirement for students who pass the minimum requirements and possess exceptional academic potential," as obtainable in several countries.
We agree with Babalola. Even in countries with minimum
age requirements for admission into tertiary institutions, there are special places for children with extraordinary
abilities. The Imafidons, often regarded as "Britain's Brainiest" family, is a case in point. Anne-Marie Imafidon earned a master's degree in mathematics and computer science from the University of Oxford at aged 20. Indeed, the youngest college graduate and holder of the Guinness World Record is Michael Kearney who graduated in 1994 at aged 10. Children are endowed differently. Other stakeholders have asked why, of the troubles in the sector, this should be the priority of the current administration, and why the policy is being made punitive.
Although the 6-3-3-4 system the country operates assumes that children would spend six years in primary school and another six years in secondary school (divided into junior and senior) before completion at age 18, the system has not worked that way. At present, there are hundreds of thousands of students studying in many Nigerian universities, public or private, who gained admission at less than 16. And there are millions who will complete their secondary school in the next five years before age 18. The prevailing fear is that Mamman's policy will force
many students to stay at home, some for years. What will they be doing in the intervening years?
It is more shocking that there was no consultation of any kind, at least to psyche up the parents, and the aspiring undergraduates. Even more fundamental, education is on the concurrent list in the 1999 Constitution. Major decisions ought to be taken in consultation with the sub-national governments. Instead of focusing on age, Mamman should turn his attention on worries that are weighing down education in the country: fixing the infrastructure in schools, hiring quality staff and securing the learning environment. In an age of technology, many of our schools are sorely deprived. There is not much to cheer, particularly in public schools. But if the government is bent on reviewing the present admission policy, it should consult extensively. And it should not be implemented like a military decree.
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Instead of focusing on age, Mamman should turn his attention on worries that are weighing down education in the country: fixing the infrastructure in schools, hiring quality staff and securing the learning environment
