Quack graduates!

Being quack NYSC does not mean the fake NYSC members who use one way or the other to claim to be NYSC members, but also genuine NYSC members who have graduated from various universities across the country.According to the Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria some time ago, it discouraged the posting of NYSC members to […]

Being quack NYSC does not mean the fake NYSC members who use one way or the other to claim to be NYSC members, but also genuine NYSC members who have graduated from various universities across the country.
According to the Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria some time ago, it discouraged the posting of NYSC members to schools because ‘they cause mass failures’. The council made it clear that mass failure witnessed in various examinations by primary and secondary schools students was partly caused by the ‘unqualified’ youth corps members posted to teach there.
The council requested the headquarters of the National Youths Service Corps to stop deploying corps members who lack basic knowledge of teaching to teach in schools. Only corps members who have studies education as a discipline should be deployed to schools.
Some organizations are also known to reject corps members, while some give the require corps members they wish to accept and pay then little token at end of the month. Now what is the faith of undergraduates, especially in times of job opportunities? To be realistic, Nigerian university students study hard.
The problem is the method used in the study. This method sometimes go in line with their beliefs and ability, and the lecturers who are in a position to grade the students also believe in taking back what they give students in their notes or reading materials. This therefore sometimes leads students to last-minute revisions for examination, which don’t stay long in their brain; it is necessary to dig in to an idea before you can use it practically. After all, the purpose of education is not simply to get good grades but to acquire reasonable knowledge. Nowadays, students are not really after learning but making good grades; since they have already heard of competitive situations in the labour market. Though it is some students’ belief that last-minute learning would not stop them from gaining knowledge, but sometimes it is the best way of studying and making good grades since some lecturers mark them wrong if they fail to give back what the lecturer gave them in their notes. Some lecturers keep saying ‘don’t cram’ while students reply in their mind ‘no alternative to cramming to make a good grade’.
It is clear that cramming help student in making good grades, but won’t help in putting the knowledge to practical use. And this has been part of the secret behind the existence of quack NYSC who may contribute in failure of lower level students such as primary and secondary schools. Certainly a secondary leaver cannot be compared to realistic graduates.

Aliyu Suleima Bida, Department of Mass Communication, Bayero University, Kano <[email protected]>;