RESIDENCY DIARIES 9- Is School A Scam?

 

IS SCHOOL A SCAM? 

Whilst in Residency, we had a daily routine of picking a topic at random and sharing our thoughts on same during breakfast. 

We would often find ourselves engaging in healthy conversations on educational issues, politics and national development, relationships and marriage, youth development and of course writing, which was that one thing that Brough us together. 

On one particular morning after breakfast, we zeroed in on discussion about education in Africa. One resident without mincing words blurted out;'School is a Scam! It is not exactly what our parents and society has sold to us'. 

He continued, 'We have been told from childhood that; Go to school, complete and get a well paying job to help set you up in life. But the reality on the ground is different. I think school is a big scam.l especially in Africa'. 

With these statements, the tone was set for our conversation at the dinning table. Each resident shared his views on same. We all agreed having an education is good but the current educational systems in Africa does not meet expectations of industry and hence does not guarantee the what we were promised. 

Unlike the olden days where companies will line-up to interview and offer students jobs in school before graduation,  graduates of today on the average complete school and can take up to ten years trying to land for themselves a good job. 

Maybe, the generation that enjoyed such opportunities failed us. They didn't expand the chance given them to make room for the generations after them. They boast about the good old days yet haven't done much to meet the growing needs of successive generations. They talk about the good old days without creating the opportunities for us to experience good new days for us. 

When I had the chance to chip in a word, I recall asking my fellow residents: 'Don't you think you are here partly because you received some form of formal education?' And don't you think, you are far better off than someone your age who never received your level of educational exposure and experience?' 

They all answered in the affirmative.  

And to elevate the discourse, I asked another question. In specific terms why do you think education hasn't done much for you? 

The resident who raised the topic replied; there are people who are not highly educated yet are the greats of this world. They are the wealthiest men of the world. We can talk of Aliko Dangote of Nigeria and Osei Kwame Deapite of Ghana. 

There is some truth in your assertion but it goes beyond the...these are outliers and hence we can't generalise their achievements to say people will make it without education. 

Generally, you will realise that educated people on the average are far better than uneducated people in many spheres of life. 

And it will interest you to know some of these rich men after making their millions employ private tutors to help them learn to read and write. They may not be formally educated but informally they have been educated to do the exploits they do as business mugols/magnates. 

They send their child to the best schools in the world and give them everything money can afford so they excel in their education and hopefully take over from them. These rich men as a matter of fact do not employ people who are not educated. They scout for the best of the highly educated to manage their companies. Why don't they employ people with the same level of education as themselves? 

It is an admission without saying so in words that they believe in formal education. 

The most talented of the World hire managers and lawyers to handle their contractual terms for them. They admit without saying in words that they believe the educated to be there for them. 

So, what do you think? Is school a Scam?