I was hardworking as a boarder. Permit me to rephrase, 'I was made to work hard' as a boarder. Perhaps some of us have heard when stones are thrown to determine the size of grass to be cut. Ours was not much different; my high school had more than enough bushes to clear. The labor prefect was usually a scary person, except for one who liked to play often. As a junior student, I worked my life out all because I was given 'portions' of grass to cut. My forearm often got swollen after handling the cutlass for a while. The hoes were equally available, and we often sweated out our souls during the labor activities. Not only that, we were made to scrub the conveniences (toilets and bathrooms) till they sparkled. You could almost lie down in them when the time for inspection comes. We were used like slaves. Should I talk about the beatings and punishments? Life was hard for me as a student, and at some point, I told myself my kids would also go through boarding school to experience the pains I did. Well, I have had a second thought, and I would prefer a soft life for them.
Despite the difficult life we had to endure, our grades were excellent or near it. The subjects were few and mostly tailored to our passions. I can't remember having to take subjects up to fifteen as a junior student. Life was a mix of hard and interesting for us.
During the tail end of my boarding house, things began to change. The junior students soon became demigods, and the senior students stood their risk of suspension or rustication if found to beat or maltreat the junior ones. The punishments were refined and limited. It became a case where the senior students would report the junior ones to teachers for due punishments rather than descend on them by themselves. Of course, the junior students became arrogant and disrespectful, knowing full well that the teachers would easily support them and view the senior students as the wicked ones. Personally, the terrors I faced as a junior boarder were harsh, and I reflected on them with intriguing nostalgia.
The students in this generation are now pampered. This is unlike the setting in Africa, where the slaps descend before the words. It's a good thing, though. I believe the children these days are smarter, though not as strong as we were made to be in our time.
I had the privilege of engaging with some students and realized they were being exposed to numerous subjects at the same time. Some of the subjects could be as many as twenty, and I wondered how they'd cope with having all of them in their small heads. We were exposed to a few subjects, and we are proud of where we are today, at least. I just feel the students are being bombarded with too many subjects, some of which may be irrelevant even to their career or future ambitions.
I doubt if I'll suggest any disparities, but rather, encourage more teacher exposure to a few students so that even with a few subjects, the teachers can easily impact knowledge on the students. For the hard labor we were exposed to, life and the world are evolving with modernized ways of doing things. I believe students should be exposed to less tedious means of studentship.
Thank you for reading. I would love to have your comments and contributions.