OUR READING CULTURE: Going Back To The Basics.

Some books to read

It is popularly known that a man who is not informed would be deformed. Information can be acquired by reading; and reading is the means by which we gain access to information offloaded by either ourselves or someone else. It is a source of recreation, ideas and teaching.

Interestingly, everywhere one goes there is something to read: from daily newspapers, internet, television screens, etc.

In the past, people loved reading but the reverse is what we have today. The likes of Nelson Mandela, Chinua Achebe, Albert Einstein, etc were known for their intellectual prowess, because they sacrificed play for their studies, hence, they are renowned for their contributions to humanity.

In September 2013, the Liberian government in partnership with the U.S government launched a National Campaign to raise awareness on the importance of reading by students and pupils in Liberian schools, as well as the entire citizenry.

Today, Japan is one of the world’s leading economies due to their innovative spirits, brought about by their high level of reading and research. They are always deeply immersed in their reading, thus, building milestones for themselves.

Coming back home, our reading culture is so low, such that an average Nigerian only knows very little about our history as a nation.

How can we grow from being referred to as a developing nation to a developed one, when we don’t imbibe reading culture at all levels, irrespective of ethnicity, religion and age? Readers are leaders!

Our poor reading culture has really affected us in a number of ways:

• ·        Poor academic performance in examinations.
• ·        Poor communication and writing skills.
• ·        Increased level of examination malpractices.
• ·        Increased level of illiteracy.
• ·        Increased level of corruption, and many others.

Youths today are not encouraged to read due to

• ·        Poor research and development by teachers and educators in learning environments.
• ·        Poor funding to provide reading rooms or libraries.
• ·        Inadequate study materials
• ·        Changes in government policies.

Should we then with the aforementioned challenges allow illiteracy to prevent us from passing meaningful information to our posterity? No!

Imbibing the culture of reading stimulates the imaginative power of the mind and widens one’s horizons. With it, one can handle complex issues and proffer solutions.

It expands one’s life-long potentials to become empowered and productive for the society.

It helps students to be at par with their contemporaries around the world, as it is the key to education and national development.

We need concerted efforts both in public and private schools, to ensure that the libraries are well equipped with relevant books.

Teachers should encourage their learners to read daily newspapers in prints or electronically.

We are a great people, and great people are great thinkers; great thinkers are great readers. Build your archive!

THE WORK ENVIRONMENT

 

Every human-being has a unique personality which makes each of us to thrive in our habitat, but certain people may get offended by your style of relationship in a working environment.

Some of us have resilient spirits while others are phobic even in the slightest challenge, and as such, they tend to fall out with people, but a good understanding of the working environment will enable us to make it a home from home.

The work environment is simply a place where tasks are being executed; and it encompasses the nature of the environment (whether it is hot, cool, noisy, or remote), relationship with colleagues and employer(s), as well as the benefits which may be accrued to you as an employee.

In every work environment, there exists hierarchy, which shows the roles and limitations of each person in the organization. It is divided into departments and sections, having supervisors overseeing them, with a view to achieving company goals.

Many policies abound in all organizations, and employees are to make sure that they comply with it so as to avoid any brush with the management.

Employees encounter problems at work places due to their inability to conform to organizational policies. Basically, organizational policy refers to the guiding principles and procedures with which an organization will operate. It is usually drafted by the management officials, and binding on every employee.

The performance of the employees at all levels of the organization is subject to compliance with the policy, which in effect determines employees’ promotion. An employee will be queried for non-compliance with the policy. For instance, if you are supposed to be in the office at 7:30am, but you arrive often at 8:30am, giving flimsy excuses which are not tenable to your boss, you’ll be queried, and if you cannot comply, you'll be asked to resign, which may likely jeopardize your chances of securing a similar or better job than the previous.

Your work environment may be a realistic, investigative, social, enterprising, artistic or the conventional type, but whether you are in the wrong environment or not, the truth is, you must maximize your time to ensuring productivity, which is what every employer looks out for.

There is a high degree of politicking in the work environment, where people network with other colleagues in an organization, so as to benefit themselves. In some cases, office politicking hampers the achievement of an organization, since some employees may do things in their favour.

For instance, a work environment like the school is typical of an all-encompassing environment; meaning it is social, realistic, investigative, artistic and conventional in nature, and being a social environment, people network easily and gain the favour of the management staff.

Preferences may be granted to them because of their established networks, while those not in the networks, may feel biased, thus, resulting in a feud among employees. This does not rule out the fact that politics in the work environment does bring about work efficiency.

If you are experiencing this already, I would say don’t worry yourself. The most important thing you need to do is to stay focused on your job, because with patience, a problem resolves itself overtime. The world belongs to the patient man.

Ensure you maintain a reputation for honesty. Don’t even engage in a feud with your colleagues.

In any work environment you find yourself, be happy; try as much as you can to be civil to all, sociable to many, familiar with a few and friendly to a handful.

The work environment is a place for self development. Do your best at all times.

NIGERIA EDUCATION:  The  Task  Before  The  New  Minister  of  Education.

Ibrahim Shekarau

Education is a tool which cannot be compromised for anything, as it is fundamental to the development and growth of any nation. The Federal Ministry of Education in Nigeria is saddled with the responsibilities of

1.     Formulating a national policy on education

2.     Collecting and collating data for appropriate planning and financing

3.     Maintaining uniform standards of education throughout the country

4.     Controlling the quality of education in the country through the supervisory role of the Inspectorate Services Department

5.     Developing the curricula and syllabuses at the national level, in conjunction with other stakeholders.

Since its inception, some individuals have shown their capabilities to head the affairs of the ministry, starting from Aja Nwachukwu who held the position between 1958 and 1965 to Professor Ruqayyatu Rufai, who was there between April 2010 and September 2013.

The first Nigerian to receive a doctoral degree in Education was the late Prof. Babatunde Fafunwa, who was the minister of education between 1990 and 1992. He started the first tutorial college in Nigeria, Foucos Tutorial College (formerly on Ogunlana Drive, Surulere, Lagos.) in 1982.

He brought about the emergence of the Nigerian Certificate of Education, which is the minimum entry requirement for the teaching profession. He incorporated the learning of indigenous languages in Nigerian schools with English as a second language.

He also introduced the 6-3-3-4 system of education for six years of Primary education, three years of Junior Secondary, another three years of either Technical education or three years of Senior Secondary and the last four years for Tertiary education respectively.

Dr Oby Ezekwesili, a chartered Accountant, came on board as the minister of education between June 2006 and April 2007 during Obasanjo’s second term in office. She had served as the minister of Solid Minerals.

While in office, she observed that the structure of the ministry had limitation to develop the human capital needed for the progress in the sector. These necessitated the reforms that took place in the sector.

Dr Sam Egwu was the minister of education between December 2008 and March 2010 during President Umaru Musa Yar'adua. His tenure was characterized by the strike actions embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). Based on these, he was succeeded by Prof. Ruqayyatu Rufai.

Prof. Ruqayyatu was in office between April 2010 and September 2013, and banned the use of mobile phones in secondary schools. The ministry under her watch was to conduct a nationwide school census. ASUU strike also lingered during her time.

After the sack of Ruqqayatu, Barrister Nyesom Wike was appointed as the supervisory minister of education on 11^th September, 2013.

On July 9, 2014, President Goodluck Jonathan announced the emergence of former governor of Kano State, Ibrahim Shekarau, as the minister of education. He (alongside three others) was brought in at a critical time of the nation’s development.

The task before the new minister is highly demanding as he must design a frame work alongside other stakeholders to resolving the ongoing strike in the Polytechnics and Colleges of Education. He must ensure that the disparity between holders of HND and B. Sc. is completely eradicated.

Polytechnic graduates have roles to play in the labour market just as their counterparts in the universities; hence, they should not in any way be discriminated, otherwise, all Polytechnics in the country should be scrapped off.

The technical and vocational sub sector is suffering because of low manpower needed for industrial development. Today, students from technical schools seek admission into universities, which negates the establishment of the Polytechnic education. They see Polytechnic education as a second option on failure to secure university admission.

The volume of academic space for admission into tertiary institution is low, and it behooves the new minister to do something.

Formulating policies is not the problem; rather, implementation and sustainability are key to ensuring development of the sector. Teachers’ quality and number must also be looked into in terms of their remuneration, so as to encourage people into the teaching profession.

NIGERIA EDUCATION: How Do I Become A Certified Teacher?

Teacher with students

The education sector of Nigeria has experienced a lot of ups and downs, both at the Federal and State levels, which has made it seem as though those at the helm of affairs are nonchalant towards developing the sector.

With regards to acquiring formal or Western education, Nigeria has a very high patronage, but with this high acquisition of knowledge, the sector is still being faced with a lot of challenges as though the professionals in the sector do not bring their expertise to bear.

Nigeria’s educational policies are among the best in the world, yet, we do not have proper planning for implementation. Over three decades ago, it was a pride to be a teacher, and only those who had passion for it availed themselves. Teachers were well trained, and they gave their best to work.

Today’s proliferation of teachers both at the primary and post-primary levels is due to the high unemployment rate in the country.

The regulatory body of the teaching profession in Nigeria is the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) which was established by the TRCN Decree No. 31 of 1993 (now TRCN Act CAP T3 of 2004)

Formerly, the prerequisite for registering with the professional body was the presentation of certificates, but the new trend as stated by the TRCN Director of professional operations, Dr Steve Nwokocha, is that teachers will have to sit for the professional qualifying examinations.

This simply means that, without a teacher passing the qualifying examinations, such one cannot be registered. In accordance to this, the Lagos State Commissioner for Education Mrs. Olayinka Oladunjoye said that teachers would no longer be employed in the state without the TRCN certificate and those already in service will not be promoted until they present the TRCN certificate.

The renewal of the teachers’ licence is subject to passing the professional examination, thus, upholding the dignity of the body.

To be registered, you need a qualification in education obtainable from an accredited institution, after which you can obtain the registration form from any TRCN zonal offices, fill and submit same along with photocopies of your credentials including the original copy of the deposit slip.

Get certified, to avoid being embarrassed.

THE GIANT IN YOU

THE FUTURE IS PURCHASED WITH THE PRESENT

I would say a giant is a person of extraordinary strength in body or intellect. This simply implies that giants come in different forms- stature or intellect.

Different giants have emerged over time and can be traced to the Holy Bible when the sons of God had intercourse with the daughters of men, which brought about the Nephilim; also referred to as GIANTS- they were mighty in stature.

Another form of giants can be seen in a man called Nimrod, who was intellectually mighty in his works in erecting the Tower of Babel. He was able to search what he could bring into the human world. Do you belong to the former or latter class of giant?

Firstly, where does it start to become an intellectual giant?

Does going to a conventional school have influence on you becoming a giant? To a large extent it does, but you don't need to acquire all the academic qualifications to being one. The first point of call is YOU. Your mind!

The human mind is a set of cognitive faculties that enables consciousness, perception, thinking, judgement and memory. With the mind, we are aware of our immediate environment, to perceive and respond to stimuli using sensory receptors situated different parts of the body.

So many theories have emerged regarding the situate of the mind, but it is generally accepted as being synonymous with our thoughts. It is exclusive to every individual. You are the only one who can interprete your intrapersonal communication.

Secondly, how can the mind be developed? Often times in my discussion with people (especially young folks) I make it known to them that no one was born a dullard or genius. You can become what you choose for yourself.

Basically, the affective, psychomotor and cognitive aspects of our lives are very important. The question is: what do you feed your mind with? The human mind (brain) is such a storehouse which is capable of retaining things for a long time due to the interconnection of billions of neurons.

Someone sat down to think on how to facilitate calculations from the use of Abacus to scientific calculators. The missing Malaysian plane is nowhere to be found yet, even with the high technology being used in the world today.

Can’t we design radar system that would detect the tiniest object in the ocean? Folks! It is possible- the power of the mind.

What you know today is not what you knew 20 years ago, because of certain factors such as environment, education and age, which have influenced your intelligence. As much as one’s Intelligent Quotient (IQ) matters, one’s determination to achieving success cannot be ruled out, because your output is a product of your input: ‘Garbage In, Garbage Out.’

Using IQ test to measure one’s intelligence is not as accurate as one would expect, because it is subject to a specific or standardized test for which it is designed to measure.

Becoming an intellectual giant depends solely on you. The future is purchased with the present; sow the right things into your BOX, and you will have the gains of tomorrow.

geophilworld: DON’T KEEP SILENT ONYOUR CHILD’S BEHAVIOURI had ...

geophilworld: DON’T KEEP SILENT ONYOUR CHILD’S BEHAVIOUR

I had ...: DON’T KEEP SILENT ON YOUR CHILD’S BEHAVIOUR I had a friend (Bayo) who got married to Jane a decade ago but without a child. Everyon...

DON’T KEEP SILENT ON YOUR CHILD’S BEHAVIOUR

I had a friend (Bayo) who got married to Jane a decade ago but without a child. Everyone had expected that by the second month into their marriage, preparations would be on-going to welcome the new visitor (their baby), contrarily, it was not as expected. Six months passed, a year was gone, two years, and so on. No issue!

Bayo became worried. To the amazement of all, Jane’s mother-in-law was not in any way looking for a substitute for her son. She kept faith with God, since medical reports have clearly shown that the couple is fertile.

One night, Bayo returned from work late, but before then, he had called Jane at 5:00 pm that he would put up at the office so as to meet up with office tasks. While he was talking to her, he heard her sobbing without any response. Abruptly, Bayo left the office for home to know what was wrong with his wife.

Exactly 11:00pm, Bayo called Jane that he was at the door. Immediately, Jane opened the door and fell on her husband. Still sobbing! All attempts to know what was wrong were abortive, as Jane kept mute all the while.

Jane was able to put herself together to talk to her husband. Here is what she said: “I may not be the best woman on earth, but I know assuredly, that you are worth more than the whole world to me. I cannot fathom the depth of your love. I will always love you. Bayo was startled for some minutes, wondering such accolades on him by his wife.

She then let the cat out of the bag and said: “honey, I’m two weeks pregnant! Bayo screamed and burst into tears of joy, appreciating God’s loving-kindness towards his family.

Nine months later, Jane was delivered of a baby boy who was named ‘Ebun-Oluwa’ meaning God’s gift. Three years later, a feud ensued between the couple over their son’s character, who bullied every child he came across. He became a pilferer, and insolent when corrected. Hmmm! The child we all expected.

In all these, Jane kept silent on her son’s characters which were worsening by the day, since she had waited for ten years before having him.

Ebun-Oluwa became an affront to the family, and would use derogatory words on his parents. What really went wrong?

If you think you are doing your child a whole world of good by keeping mute on his/her absurd character, then, are kicking against the bricks. Definitely, you will feel the pains alone. An average African child needs not to be pampered; else, you spoil the child.

Parents and guardians please don’t keep quiet on your child’s behaviour, lest we breed posterity of indignity.