How African Education fared post-colonialism
Education is defined as facts, skills, and ideas that have been learned, either formally or informally. (By Oxford dictionary)
Given the above definition, it is clear that it takes education to become anything one aspires to be, education in simple terms is the act of learning ( whether - good or evil ) it is paramount then to have government, private firms, and individuals invest in education in other to produce, sustainable environment, sound minds, and better economy.
“Among the many problems of Africa there is none that has attracted more discussion, and indeed more controversy, than that of the type of education which should be given to the African.” Thus stated William
Malcolm Hailey
From the above, it's seen that education is more discussed since the break from colonial rule in Africa, yet one may argue that the talks yield little or nothing as regards personal growth, national development, and environmental sustainability.
Looking at advanced nation's investment in education averaging at 4.7% of European countries GDP and that of African nations at 3.4%. Although most African nations meet the expectations required by the UN on the 4% of GDP spending, however, most failed as regards 15% of the total budget for the year.
In a study carried out by AfDB in the African Economic Outlook 2020, African Development Bank( AfDB ). It was also observed that while African countries are devoting significant resources to education, the region has the worst education spending efficiency. According to the report, Africa has a 58% efficiency score for primary education and 41 % efficiency for secondary education, both more than 20% points lower than the second-worst performing region. According to the report, if public spending efficiency in Africa were at the level of Latin America, the region’s primary school completion rate would rise from 79% to 98%. Within Africa, Southern Africa has the highest education spending efficiency.
The postcolonial period had African leaders search for solutions to her education sector, making it suitable for development.
Some Africanization of education Project are,
- Africanization of staff and the creation of new national institutions: Looking back by way of evaluation it is estimated that the
proportion of African teaching staff has risen from 64% in 1978-79 to 84% in 1986-87. Institutions were also built to compliment the few structures left by the colonial master.
Aside from the Africanization of staff, we had the Africanization of course by Introducing courses like history, linguistics, literature, religious studies, and philosophy. To further teach of its culture and history.
Examining our current situation, Africa has sure made progress, the question then is if these achievements have been able to meet up with advanced world stand and have a positive impact on the sustainable advancement in major sectors in African nations.
Below are some of the recommendations highlighted briefly which is expected to make Africa position herself for growth and development in both education and by extension productivity.
— Make new and applicable curriculum - Course curriculum should be reviewed to suit the modern-day need and tailored to solve African problems.
— Focus on using local languages to help children understand better - although previous research has shown that the use of local languages is less effective in learning, however, there is a vital role language plays in the learning process therefore there should be a balance as regards this.
Others are: Public spending efficiency and Girl child education
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