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ILARO-YEWA – An advice has gone to the Federal government of Nigeria to revamp the Technical Colleges and its intended value in the country.
Former Vice Chancellor of University of Lagos, Prof, Rahamon Bello and the Governing Council Chairman of the Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro, Dr. (Mrs.) Veronica Ogbuagu made the call on Wednesday, March 30, 2022 at the 20th Convocation Lecture, held at the Raheem Oloyo International Conference Centre of the Polytechnic, Ilaro-Yewa, Ogun State.
Prof. Bello explained that prioritizing an efficient technical education system will no doubt redeem the indolence industrialization of Nigeria state.
In his lecture titled: “Polytechnic Education In Nigeria And Current Global Reality”, Prof. Bello noted that students monitored by trained Guidance/Counselors would surely turn out to become iTech savvy if taught using technologically-based curricular by holders of Bachelor of Technology, Master of Technology or Ph.D in Technology instead of University produced degree holders.
According to the Guest Lecturer, who in a way, was not in support of upgrading Polytechnic to University, rather, the Professor of Chemical Engineering said that it’s beneficial for Nigerians if Nigeria Polytechnic can be empowered to award Bachelor and Master of Technology, respectively, even Ph.D.
His words, “The National Universities Commission (NUC) should be enabled to approve undergraduate and postgraduate (system) for our Polytechnic with appropriate facilities and resources for these as opposed to outright conversion of the Polytechnic into Universities.”
Prof. Bello also submitted. That the starting point is to resurrect the dead technical education.
“Firstly, there are supposed to be adequate practical facilities for Science, Technology and Creative Arts courses in the JSS to enable adequate interests to be developed. These are absent in the majority of the schools (public and private) and these result in using alternatives to practical. The first attempt in schooling to make use of their hands is absent.
“Second, there is supposed to be appropriate counseling for the students such that they could be streamlined properly into areas of comparative advantages for their future education. We also fail in this respect. How many schools have requisite Councilors to take these? All JSS graduates herded into SSS irrespective of their untapped abilities and some end up being wasted”, Prof. Bello stated.
Preferring recommendations on the way to make Nigeria Polytechnic Education competitive, Professor Bello stated that emerging technologies should be taken into cognizance.
“In line with the emerging trends, the inclusion of elements of the emerging technologies in curricula should be adopted. For example, IOT and IT interface should be known to all even in the introductory phase to enable them to be familiar with the trends in technology and adaptability to their needs.
“Similarly, robotics should be a component of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering programs at all levels. Also advanced IOT concepts should be basic for Electrical and Electronics Engineering and similar programmed”, the UNILAG ex-VC posited.
Corroborating, the FPI Governing Council Chairman, Dr. Veronica Ogbuagu submitted that prioritizing efficient technical education system will no doubt redeem the indolence industrialization of Nigeria state.
She explained that employing sound Guidance Counselors to monitor pupils through to secondary school will in no time efficiently exposed students who are passionate about technical education such that, willfully and passionately, such students will opt for Polytechnic education, and the end point will no doubt bring about the desired industrial nation of Nigeria, replica of. Developed nations.
Her words, “At the age of Junior Secondary School, the job of a guidance counselor should be restored. Nigeria has lost the importance of a sound and much prepared guidance counselor from a good university who sees through, who follows through, both emotional, physical, academic and vocational. A Guidance Counselor should be employed to monitor even primary school pupils.
“After JS3, the Guidance Counselor is supposed to administer tests to find out the interest, the aptitude and the skill of every child. That’s when we can know a child that is technically inclined or a child that has emotion for teaching. Even a child that likes Agriculture.
“And we will start to streamline them; some that are academically sound that want to go to SSS and to the University.
“The NBTE should fight to see that Polytechnics set their exams like JAMB and select the best of them. This is a challenge to Unions.
“We need to make adverts, we need to let parents know, the public know, let the community know the importance of Technical education and Polytechnic. Without this, we won’t go anywhere”.
Dr. Veronica Ogbuagu, the Delta State former Commissioner for Education also underscored the unrivaled importance of using professional educationalists to head every available leadership position in the Ministry of Education, adding that no amount of brilliance of specialists in other fields can compensate for trained educationists.
“Have you seen a Professor appointed as CMD of any medical institution or to mount a leadership position in the legal profession?
“It’s only in the education sector that you see a lawyer serving as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education in Nigeria, too bad”, she submitted.
