In one of the activities held to commemorate the 49th anniversary of Nigeria independence from the clutches of colonial despondency, I had a sparkling tête-à-tête with some Nigerians who were grossly dissatisfied with the country’s state of haplessness. The thematic spotlight of our discussion was wide-ranging, but, it was soon narrowed to education because it held on one of the citadels outside the shores of Nigeria.
While flogging budding issues on the awful state of education in Nigeria, one of the contributors made a scathing remark about Nigerian education, which perhaps drew my terse response. He remarked, “Nigerian education never made me, it is my sojourn abroad that has placed me in a good stead for purposeful scholarship.” He went as far as saying his professors are better than those at home, thus raising question about Nigerian intellectual human resource competence? I shouted him down and insisted that he desists from such misleading and generalizing claim. However, I was able to articulate some points which won me the attention of those on the other side of the talk. Since that moment I have been restlessly battling with the bitter parting shot, yet genuine poser which the younger chap left us with, when he said, ‘with the foreign search for education lies the hope of reviving the almost faded flavor of Nigerian Education.’ Can this be accepted as a statement of fact or should it be accepted on its face value? The following observations and lines of thought been verbalized will foretell.
Starting with a statement credited to one erudite professor, a political scientist of note, will make an interesting prelude into the gist of this article. This widely published man of knowledge had once worked in Nigeria as an expatriate lecturer for about 13 years before leaving for another country. That was in the golden days, when our universities were attractive to foreign lecturers and students. While in the middle of a very lively and highly charged class, the grey haired professor paused as if he was lost in thought. Suddenly, the man put up a cynical look, only to deliver a bomb shell which sent shock waves across the minds of Nigerian students who were seated in the midst of other nationals. ‘The Nigerian students that I am seeing are those who have run away from the academic rigours in their country. They are not the best of the students’ in Nigeria,” the aged professor said. After delivery his mouth-to-air missile, the widely read scholar put up a sigh of relief and went ahead with his lecture. What could have made this man of knowledge utter such statement given the fact that those Nigerian students to whom he directed his statement were his best students? Can it be ill-motivated or be a factual comparative assessment of what the aged professor know of Nigeria and what he has seen? To provide an objective response, one may need to, on the one hand take a look at the caliber and categories of Nigerians studying abroad alongside the circumstances that surround such search for what will be tentatively called foreign education. On the other, is to look for any connection between the preceding and the complexus associated with securing a visa which qualifies someone to travel out of the shores of the country for whatever purpose.
Based on informed opinion, there are three categories of Nigerian students studying abroad. There are those who are lecturers or employees in Nigerian Universities, who, for very cogent reasons have decided to pursue doctorate abroad, although a few are running masters’ programmes. They will henceforth be referred to as category A. Next to this, are those who are not university staff, but have chosen to pursue further education or begin their first degree overseas. Forthwith, they will be referred to, as category B. Those in category C include those, whose foundational and first degree educational instructional medium was, say in French, Arabic or Chinese, and have enrolled for higher degree with a different instructional medium. There is the last category, which for the purposes of convenience will be referred to as strayed students.
The dearth of functional library, poor state of learning infrastructure, lack or limited access to recent advances in various spheres of knowledge, length of time required to complete a PhD, are some of the factors which have compelled most lecturers to enroll for doctorate abroad. While some are on study leave with or without pay, others are placed on study loan, scholarship, (either from their university, government or other sponsorship agencies). The first question that comes to mind is how some of these lecturers got employed in the first instance. A number of factors come to bear here. There are those employed based on merit, due process, the man-know-man factor and some based on quota system. The squalid condition of service in our universities have made lecturing unattractive to quality and first class students, so, most of them do not bother to seek for job as a university lecturer. Few who stay back to lecture may have resorted to this option may be as a result of some elderly intervention, personal decision or after various attempts to land a better offer have failed. On this note, our universities are left with the option of employing the availables. Based on this, it can be said the percentage of high quality students or first class brains who seek job or get employed in our universities have reduced beyond the marginal. So, one can proceed to suppose that a sizeable percentage of high quality students or first rated brains who are in the system, more so recruited based on merit and through due process constitute a fringe of the young lecturers in Nigerian universities. So, this leaves us with dearth of quality hands as lecturers in our higher places of learning.
Those employed on the basis of man-know-man somehow overlaps with those smuggled into the system through the quota system, but, there exists delineating distinctions between the two. The man-know-man beneficiaries may get employed based on a contact with a well-placed figure, who can get anything from the establishment. This may be through a contact person within the system or based on a special request by a god-father elsewhere. The god-father may be one olori-ebi- head of the family, head/member of fraternity, king, emir, obi, political figure, pastor, imam, business magnate, or what have you. Such intervention is often sought in getting a relative, or any associate employed as a lecturer or member of staff. The percentage of those recruited through this channel, who truly deserve a place in the university are also very small. But, this is one of the easiest means of getting into the system. Thus, this increases the percentage of the undesirable hands who are in our academia. Also, the quota system involves some element of lobbying, and hardly prioritizes merit, so, the overlap with the man-know-man basis of getting recruited into the system. This is more predominant in state universities, where certain percentage of the staff to be recruited are ceded to local governments, towns or even, the place where the university is located. Some conservative states in the Northern and Southern region take the lead here. Here again, merit surely suffer. In this quota system brace, there is also the unsolicited tribal, racial and religious card put to play by highly placed members of the university while recruiting lecturers into the system. With all this, it can be said that quality or merit is not major determinant of who becomes a lecturer in our universities, at least since the last 15 years. This is part of the reasons why the quality in our universities has dropped alarmingly. Given the veracity of this analysis, it can be said that, the percentage of our lecturers seeking PhD abroad who are fit for real academic work have also dropped. So, there is the high probability that with whatever training they receive abroad, they may not be able to feel the void in their profession as a lecturer. This will become clearer when it is treated, the aspect of this piece which focuses on what people do to earn a foreign certificate and the interacting factors that work things out.
Those in category B, which embrace those who left Nigeria not as employees in any of the Nigerian universities, could have decided to do this for a number of reasons. This might be as a result of reasons which range from the need to acquire better education for academic to non-academic purpose, to the struggle for survival. Some of those in this grouping are enrolled in foreign universities by their parents as ease out option, especially, those children that have become the black sheep of the family. This, in effect increases the number of the undesirables. Also, in this assemblage, is a fair percentage of those brilliant students who have refused to solicit lecturing job. This is for the simple fact that they are less bothered traveling abroad since they are having nice time with banks, oil companies, communication industries, multinational companies and a number of places where they are hotly chased. Very few amongst them may have a rethink to either return to the academe or resign their job in pursuance of higher education abroad. Even, if they do, at least, the stark truth is that most of them do end up as consultants or simply return to the private sector as big boys. To the exception of these set of people and those from financially well off families, the remaining set of people in category B, do rely on personal income or assistance from friends and, at times, on struggling relatives, to acquire a damn expensive education abroad. Within this bracket, there also exists the very few who also have amassed the means required to sponsor their education. On this ground, one can easily surmise that the bulk on those in category B are financially constrained and may not be the better candidates for further studies, especially at the Ph.D level.
So, most of those in category B find it difficult to foot their academic and day-to-day expenses abroad, especially those who have the left the country with the members of their nuclear family. In other words, they are often lurked in survival battle. As a result, added to the question of their fitness for higher degree is the problem of financial detraction, hence, the reason why they are always one-leg-in and one-leg-out student. Therefore, the only option is to seek for job that can make them survive, so, in the process, another reasonable percentage do end-up leaving studying for a journey of no return. For those in this group, who are fortunate to combine the struggle for survival and academics, they hardly concentrate on their studies. So, it can also be concluded, that a greater proportion of those in category B may not be able to optimize the opportunity to acquire a good education abroad. One thing with foreign education that is often at the mercy of this category of students is that, the system is somehow flexible. Eventually, with late hour efforts, these sets of students, that is the financially constrained ones, may end up making it in one way or the other to pass their exams and eventually badge a certificate. At this juncture, it can be said that, there is the low percentage of quality students in this group as well as the dominant percentage who are not financially well off to sponsor their education abroad. This is the first defect and challenge with those in this group.
The second defect with those in category B is closely associated with those who are on good financial footing, especially the children of the wealthy ones, whose parents might have acquired such wealth legally or illegally. The money at the disposal of these set of students is always too much, so, one reason why most of them pay less attention to their academics. Abroad, part of the unwritten law, is that, students hardly fail, especially those who are not defaulters. This reality dawn on Kate Eliza O'Connor, so, why he pronounced that, ‘Universities treat overseas students as cash cows.’ There are some universities who may penalize their lecturers for failing students of this sort, because universities now combine business making with scholarship. Alderman in a speech delivered at the University of Buckingham partly substantiated this when he said, “I have heard it seriously argued that international students who plagiarize should be treated more leniently.’ The special treatment in actual fact transcends the aspect of plagiarism as this concept of cash cows plays significant role in the overall grading exercise. At whatever rate, the money making drive of universities can be said to have relegated scholastic pursuit to the second fiddle, hence, the leveraging pad for these set of students to have their way, without bribing.
For those in category C, that is, folks seeking higher degree with an instructional medium that is different from their previous education, the greater percentage of them share the defects of those in category B. Although they do undergo a language bridging course aimed in getting them switch to the new language, the simple fact is that, one or two years is not enough for those involved in researches or studies leading to the award of masters and PhD to acquire the needed proficiency level. What often provokes this switch is the fear of being accommodated into the labour market back home, so, the duress to learn in the language recognized by the market and employers. Most of those in this category must have either had their foundational education in Francophone or Arab speaking countries. While a small percentage may scale the language-switch hurdles, yet, with serious defects, many hardly acquire the language required for conducting researches, demystifying sources, advancing the frontiers of knowledge and worse still, may not be able to communicate in simple, intelligible and academic language that is deserving of their pedigree. To meet up with the challenges and rigour of acquiring such degree, PhD inclusive, they do rely on friends to submit assignments. For those with the financial muscles, their last resort has often been the assignment/term paper/thesis mill, where anything academic paper is up for sales. This may be on the internet or by engaging the services of those on ground. often times, they do get whatever they want because with minimum effort and the unwritten code of students’ hardly failing, the grace door to becoming and achieving their dream is widely opened to their favour. A finding by the University of Alberta which identified sources of cheating to include dearth of proficiency in writing and research skills, external factors (e.g., family commodification of knowledge and education, places our argument in context.
The last category, labeled as strayed students comprise those who have no business in the four walls of the university, but, secured student visas to get out of the country. To secure admission, they rely on forged documents such as doctored transcripts, forged certificates, bogus WAEC certificates and spurious testimonials. A fair percentage of those in this category graduated with a third class or pass from the university and some went to polytechnic, monotechnic, only to cook up a university degree so as to secure admission for further studies. Even, some of them are NCE graduates, and of the schools of Agriculture and Nursing respectively. This is not often detected because most universities abroad do not confirm whatever document is submitted to them. To get these fake documents, they may co-opt with an insider, relate with the oluwole boys and some just do that within the pleasure of their homes.
Based on the aforesaid, if one is to take the average of those studying abroad, it will tilt towards the side of the least qualified Nigerians. So, our grey hair professor seems to get it right. Now, attention will be turned to how and what people do to get masters or PhD abroad….to be continued
The Parody of Nigerian Education and the Alternative Search for Foreign Certificate: Whither the Hope of a Better Future? (Part II)
There are two ways masters and PhD programmes are conducted abroad. These are the course work combined with research and the research option alone. For programmes based on course and research work, the course work part may require class presentation, submission of term papers, written mid-term exams and final exams which may assume the form of a take home, written examination or submission. To make class presentation, it is anticipated that sincere scholarly effort be committed in researching the topic to be discussed and that the output be presented to the class either using a power point or making oral presentation. With the power point, the presenter is expected to make use of his words and not those lifted from other unacknowledged sources. To those having one-leg-in and the other one out, lifting from the internet is one option to get this done, and to those with language deficiency, same applies. To those whose financial wellness has taken them away from classes, soliciting the assistance of others to get this at a premium is about their last resort. With submitted term papers, take home examinations, those who rely on the thesis mill may easily have their ways. And of course, the earlier two set of students can make do with this alternative. So, the success level at this stage will imply a success level with the course work, because in most foreign universities, the continuous assessment often constitutes 60 to 70% of the whole grading exercise. The politics of teacher’s evaluation by students, in some instances, may be to the vantage of this category of students, because the teachers, particularly those on contract, will need to rob the students’ back for them to have their contracts renewed. This is a general survey and possibilities which may affect the categories of foreign certificate seekers highlighted above. What is being contested should not be taken as being generalizing or as a sweeping one, but as one of those possibilities which might affect the categories of Nigerian students thus identified in this article. At this stage, it will be more apposite to mention some practical examples of how and what our people to earn a doctorate. This will be done within the precincts of some scholarly findings and official statements on what people to earn higher degrees.
Datuk Ong Tee Keat, of Higher Education Ministry in one of the Asian countries was reported to confirm the ministry’s awareness of what was reported as, ‘hundreds of master’s and PhD students are getting “professional thesis writers” to pen their thesis. As reported, he further lamented, that there was nothing his ministry could do because ‘educational institutions were not complaining about it. (New Straits, December, 2007). Jean Snedegar in a more revealing study observes that, 4 out of 10 students rely on scissor and paste scholarship to earn a degree while Coastal Carolina University intimates one with the use of Paper Mills and internet to write a thesis, term paper and PhD dissertations. It is also thought provoking to observe whistleblower telling the BBC that academics were being encouraged to give foreign postgraduate students special treatment because they pay higher fees. Though these studies do not mention what our people do to earn foreign certificates, but, contact with time and people will bear this in the specifics. A senior colleague who is a stickler for fact and academic integrity once told me of some Nigerian law students who solicited the assistance of those in sciences to write their dissertation. These beneficiaries, some of them are those who switched from one instructional medium to another. There was even a more pathetic story of a brilliant doctorate candidate whose help was sought to write a PhD dissertation. The guy who pleaded for help told his prospective contract writer of a new job he just got in one of the financial institutions and that this will affect his commitment to his thesis. This was his excuse for seeking someone’s help. More recently, another doctorate student who had once boasted before a gathering of Nigerians that there is a thin line between research and plagiarism is reported to be on the vigorous search for contract dissertation writers. What was initially kept a high profile secret eventually became a known fact as some individuals who could not stomach this made this known to other critical minds. A curious mind will want to know why such student is so bold as to make known his intension. The possible factors may be that he has seen it as culture within the fold or that some of his friends offer such favour. It might also be that he is cognizant of his friends’ connectedness to some quarters which offer such service. Also, there is the possibility that he may feel his friends will treat this undisclosed, perhaps because they have skeletons in their cupboards as well.
On another occasion, friends in the US, UK and elsewhere, have also narrated how they work lengthy hours to see things go well for them as students. Although they have never confessed their involvement in dirty deals, it is more likely that they cannot make the best out of their studies in terms of high level academic achievements. Some of them are known to have concluded their PhDs’ under one and half years. With their engagements as full-time or part-time workers, who spend about six hours at work, one can easily compute the actual number of days which they have actually used for their studies. Given room for the factors of tolerance in my computation, as engineers will do, they have actually spent less than a year for their PhDs’. Mind you, these are those, whose majority we have on the one hand, earlier analyzed to be under the availables and not the desirables and on the other, whom we have considered under category D as stray students. One may not need to be an expert before it can be said that such degrees are a mere glorified higher studies. Things of this sort happen from time to time and there are also those who have merely earned their PhDs’ by colluding with supervisors as it is with the German experience. As reported in one of the editions of Time, in Germany where about 25, 000 doctorates are produced in a year, students’ were reported to have offered their supervisors a staggering amount ranging from €4000 to €20,000 in order to earn a doctorate. A comparable and more condescending incidence happens in China, where besides parting with money, female student will have to do what a famous Nigerian singer called ‘back-for-ground,’ that is, sexual gratification.
In spite of all the instances so far highlighted, it will be unfair not to salute the commitment of young avid Nigerian scholars whose sojourn abroad to earn higher degree offer glimpse of hope. There are a number of them who truly deserve what they have earned, but, what is their percentage when compared to those who are not supposed to dream of bagging a PhD, how much more travelling abroad to do that.
One’s main apprehension should not be about those who have gotten what is least deserved, but, the fear that some of these empty heads and false bearers of a respectable academic degree are finding their ways into the system back home. The Nigerian deification of foreign certificates, the unattractiveness of the system to first class brains, the man-know-man and perhaps quota factor will make it easy for these fake and incompetent chaps to penetrate our system. This foretells a more devastating doom for our system as it will be eventually suffocated to death by these unwanted heads. A rescue plan is therefore taxing and all stakeholders must collaborate to check this epidemic.
Government and university authorities must therefore stand up to this challenge by investing heavily in the pursuit of doctorate programmes. In this regards, it is suggested that funds such as that of Petroleum Trust fund which is now serving this purpose should be given to those who are worth the investment. Effort should not stop at this, as it will be expected that each university appoints a supervisory team which monitors the progress and genuine commitment of those on the sponsorship lists. This should be in the temporary sense as it will be recommended that, as a long term measure, heavy investment be made in reviving our public institutions. If our universities’ libraries, classrooms, laboratories and workshops are elevated to meet up the contemporary needs and with condition of service made appealing, our universities will be in the better position to retain their best brains as lecturers. So, as a proposed long term measure, it is therefore advocated that aside the recently signed agreement between ASUU and the Federal Government, a master plan of development be drawn by the government on how to upgrade our universities to world class. To achieve the long term objective being suggested, emergency will have to be declared in the education sector and a bailout plan put up to rescue the situation. To this extent, it is suggested that a national confab on education be called, having all stakeholders well represented. What is to be done and how it should to be done relative to the expectedly scheduled developmental phases should be focused on. Based on such pedagogical hear-to-heart deliberation, a blue print to be implemented can be churned out. It is suggested that year 2020 be benchmarked as the target for achieving the proposed bailout plan being advocated. With sincere commitment, especially on the path of government and financial prudency on both sides, the chances are high that we can reposition our citadels among the world’s pride.
Government should stop waiting for strike before it can address the ills in the system. This will neither benefit the system nor the government because whatever comes out of such will not fully transform into a monitorable developmental fruits and resuscitative rescue outcome. The only thing that can move us in the right direction is to marshal a bailout plan that will make our system self-sustaining in all ramifications. Reliance on foreign schools or certificate holders will in the aggregate deepen our woes and further make Nigeria’s future bleakly because a sound educational system predisposes a healthy and developed nation.
With the revival of our universities as able places of learning, it will be easy for the system to monitor what it produces. And at least, one will be rest assured that aside using the desirables to do the right thing, the availables too will have to establish why they deserve to be given a chance. In the absence of the long term measure so advised, our system will continue to rely on the availables and foreign baked products, the consequences of which may lead to the final plunge of our citadels into the oblivion of existence.
The author, Mr Adebiyi Jelili Abudugana, a former UNILAG student leader can be reached through [email protected]
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