Education: Why Nigeria Always Gets It Wrong- Expert

Modupe Adelabu, a professor of education management at the Obafemi Awolowo University, has given reasons why education policies fail in Nigeria.

Adelabu, who was also a former deputy governor of Ekiti State, listed the factors that make Nigeria’s education policies fail or ineffective over the years as inaccurate financial and political postulations, failure to address rural and urban dichotomy, reliance on public funds to finance education and failure to integrate communities and other non-state actors in developing education policies.

Adelabu disclosed this in her inaugural lecture entitled: “As It Was In the Beginning, As It Is Now: Politics and Education Policies in Nigeria” at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife yesterday.

Highlighting relevant findings of her research in educational administration and management for over 30 years to establish how politics has influence education policies.

Adelabu explained that education policies largely derive from political goals and interests of a nation.

She called on the government to incorporate non-state actors in education, embrace Public Private Partnership (PPP), stop reliance on oil money to fund education, stop ignoring the political, economic, and international environment in developing education policies as a way to overcome policy failure and ineffectiveness in Nigeria,

Speaking further, she advocated the appointment of educationists as chairmen of state and federal basic education boards and other relevant education agencies in the country.

Also, she highlighted gender inequality in education leadership at the level of principalship and heads of tertiary educational institutions, ineffective approach to teacher training, ignoring globalization, rural-urban dichotomy and poor national development as some of the areas requiring urgent attention by the Nigerian government.

 Adelabu emphasized the strategic and importance of primary education boards to effective education of children as the foundation of education.

“Consequently,  I wish to recommend without mincing words that because of the importance of basic education to education, any chairman to be appointed across the state should have an education background just like any other professional parastatal in the country.” She said.

Recall that as a former Chairman of the Ekiti State Basic Education Board, she introduced trade fair and exhibition of pulpits to facilitate their interest in technical and vocational education, introduced the PPP and encouragement of inclusive education.

Some dignitaries who attended the lecture included Kayode and Bisi Fayemi; Ondo State Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu; Oyo State Deputy Governor Moses Alake-Adeyemo; Ekiti State Deputy Governor Bisi Egbeyemi and Chief Judge, Ekiti State Justice Deji Daramola as well as traditional rulers from Ekiti State.