Education in Nigeria began first in the late 19th century and struggled up until independence in 1960, yet the value of education was hardly appreciated. The last three to five decades, however, witnessed an upsurge of modernization that hinged on education with continuous and improved access such that the tales of our parents having to trek several kilometers to access education soon would be wiped away from the generation upcoming who have had exposure to digital tools from as early as two years of age.
It would be difficult to defend a time I was not too familiar with, even though I experienced a bit of it. I trekked about 6 kilometers back from school often, and this was because my parents lacked the means for such luxury. But yeah, I led my colleagues as the head prefect and also was among the top in academics. This was largely because of the extra push I had at home from extra mural classes and the need to level up with children of the well-to-do.
The little folks exposed to early education and easy access to it have expressed commendable intelligence. It is not unusual to find little children correcting the spoken English of their parents, and this is largely because the attendance at schools is reasonably regular with extra lessons to augment deficiencies. These augmented classes are even brought to their homes. I remember looking for excuses to not be taught by my lesson teacher while I was in elementary school as I felt exhausted from the all-round class sessions, but the tutor always won me. He would not leave his house to teach me only to get turned back.
The result of having unrestricted access to quality education gave me leverage and an edge over my contemporaries, as I was among the top in my state during the National Common Entrance Examination for elementary school. I have had the opportunity to have a proximal view of the contents children are exposed to, and it is amazing what the tutors are doing. While I was in elementary school, most of my tutors, if not all, were married and had taught for several years. The tutors in most schools now are young and brilliant, often spicing the tutoring of learners to individual tastes.
You will agree with me that not many people and children bought into the ideas of education several decades ago, but in this dispensation, it is fast becoming rare to have more than thirty students in a class, giving room for three tutors to identify and focus more attention on children who may need help. The overall effect is an improved academic result for the kids.
The style of tutoring has also incorporated problem-solving skills with guides and exposures to fieldwork, aeronautical engineering, etc., which are all stimulants of a learner's intelligence quotient. Little wonder you will see some very bright students who do marvelously well with problem-solving equations. Their brains are often tasked and stretched to go the extra mile as it relates to intelligence, and this is thanks to easy and early access to knowledge acquisitions.
Thank you for reading. I would love to have your comments and contributions.