DEVELOPING THE TOTAL PERSON THROUGH HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY: THE ROLE OF NIGERIAN UNIVERSITIES Sunday T. Afangideh and Ngozi. L .Nwoko Department of Education Management
International Journal of Innovations in
Sustainable Development, Volume 7, Number 2, 2016
ISSN: 2026-801X
DEVELOPING THE TOTAL PERSON THROUGH
HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY: THE ROLE OF NIGERIAN
UNIVERSITIES
Sunday
T. Afangideh and Ngozi. L .Nwoko
Department
of Education Management
Faculty of Education, Universities of
Port Harcourt, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
Email:sunny_afangideh@yahoo.com, marlin@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
Locally, nationally and
internationally, Universities are seen as centres of academic excellence that
pre-occupy themselves with teaching, research and service to their communities.
Through their teachings, researches and community service efforts, universities
should be able to produce individuals who can contribute to societal development.
Much more than what it used to be, societies have gone
beyond complexities. In Nigeria, it appears that her nationals have to grapple
with problems of various dimensions with serious personal and national life
threatening implications. Based on these, universities need to take a second
look at their curricula, so that their teachings, researches and community
service efforts would provide answers to current problems of the Nigerian society.
This paper presents information on what Nigerian Universities should teach to
produce the total persons who can contribute to the development of the nation.
Key
words: Development, Total person, Higher Education, Nigerian Universities.
Introduction
Without
any iota of omission or commission, the 21st century began on
January 01, 2000. Before this date, individuals, groups, organizations,
government, blocs and even international agencies had set and adopted targets
in respect of feats they expected to achieve. Many entities, sang ‘health for
all by the year 2000’, very many scientific breakthroughs had been targeted
apart from the attainment of maximum literacy rate, and wiping away crimes and
social vices or maladies before the year 2000. These went on and on at various
stagesto the extent that the pen manipulators (members of the Fifth Estate of
the realm) christened the year 2000 as the ‘magic year’. To mention that these
various entities never made arrangements for the attainment of the lofty goals
may be seen as an understatement, as various deliberate and in deliberate,
planned and unplanned efforts (at least in the print and broadcast media) were
made to see to the actualization of these dreams. However , whether these dreams have come true, or not 17 years into
the 21st century are issues to be handled chiefly by those who were
adults, at least, a decade before the magic year and by the evaluation of
evidences that are found everywhere, compared to what obtained then.
The 21st Century in Perspective
In
presenting the introductory analogy, it is pertinent to mention that, the
scholars have the Nigerian environment in mind and that not much differences
seem to exist between conditions in Nigeria and other third world nations, nor
with other nations of the world with superior socio-economic ratings. Just as
the evaluation of the attainment of the dreams of the 21st century
does not constitute the thesis of this discourse, it is pertinent to mention
that the magic century has been on for the past 17 years and that its make up
leaves much to be desired. However, before presenting the introductory comments
on the 21st century, the scholars feel constrained to present an
introducing comments from Oluwuo and Afangideh (2014), in their contributions
on cross-borders researches in African higher education in the context of
social problems. The scholars state thus;
From
Johanesburg in South Africa to
Cairo
in Egypt, Darka in Senegal to
Mogadishu
in Somalia, Lagos in
Nigeria
to Rabat in Morocco and Malabo
Developing the Total Person through
Higher Education in the 21st Century: The Challenges before Nigerian
Universities
in
Equatorial Guinea to Antananarivein
Madagasca,
Africans are trapped and
emersed in webs of social problems of varying dimensions,
Unprecedented in human history.(p.11)
The
scholars further that, numerous other groups of people of non-African descents,
in other continents of the world, also suffer from some debilitating
conditions, depending on the dictates of their environments.
The
presentation by the scholars paints a pitiable state of the African continent,
in this present century and if an update
is made on the state of things, since 2011, when the presentations were made,
it would appear as if Africa and Nigeria in particular has been erased from the
map of humanity. To say the least, this is where we have found ourselves.
In
making the presentation proper on the features of the 21st century
society, it becomes expedientthat a balanced view be presented. This is
necessary to avoid presentations tilted towards negativities. This is necessary
because the 21st century is not entirely bad in colouration but that
it is a combination of the good, the bad and the ugly. On the aspect of
positivity, the 21st century has provided a fertile environment for
globalization, that has turned the international society into a small village,
Information and Communication Technology (ICT), knowledge explosion, the global
phenomenon, advances in science and technology that have impacted on various
aspects of human endeavors, among them
the professions, vocations, careers and the major academics fields,
advances in international diplomacy, among others (Oluwuo & Afangideh,
2011; Onyene, 2013; Anya, 2013; Girigiri; 2008).
The
foregoing positive features of the 21st century to mention a few,
have made life betterfor people and cause improvements in international
connectivity for the benefit of man and society. It is no wonder it is
described by scholars as the magic century.
Arguably,
the 21st century has not fared so well, as there are pockets of
natural, artificial and socially induced absurdities. These despicable
phenomena include terrorism, insecurity, unemployment, drug menace, war, rising
rate of illiteracy, youths who lack skills and failed leadership (Afangideh
& Nwideeduh, 2014; Babalola, 2009; Oluwuo &Afangideh, 2011). Other
problematic features include international distrust, misguided utterances,
unnecessary rivalry, international confrontations, militancy, laziness, health
scourges, cyber crime, mutual suspicion and failed followership (Magstadt,
2006; Nnoli,1980; Akpakpan, nd). Also,
apparentlyto present what may be seen as a comprehensive list, Afangideh and
Nwideeduh (2014) list the characteristic features of the 21st
century to include terrorism, kidnappings, a culture of hatred, inter-ethnic
rivalry, climate change occasioned by the destruction of the oxone layer of the
atmosphere, the Human Immuno Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome ( HIV/
AIDS) scourge, the ebola virus, armed
robbery, armed conflicts and cyber crimes. An analysis on the foregoing tends
to show that the problems of the 21st century fit into Marcionis (2009) categorization of
social problems. For the scholar, the problems of the 21st century are problems
of social inequalities, technology and environmental problems of deviance,
conformity and well being,problems of social institutions and global problems.
Requirements for Survival in the 21st
century
In the foregoing paragraphs, efforts
were made to present the picture of the 21st century as perceived by
the writers. A synthesis on the conceptions presents what may be seen as a
frightening picture of the era. Be that as it may, human beings cannot run away
from society, since society has become a product of their own imagination and
making deliberately and indeliberately.
Consequently,
humans need to initiate and develop systems and strategies that can surmount
the challenges of the 21st century and still remain in circulation.
This becomes expedient as a refusal may lead to human extinction from the
surface of the earth.
International Journal of Innovations in
Sustainable Development, Volume 7, Number 2, 2016
Whether for the perceived positivities
or negativities of the 21st century, the individual who can live in
a globalized world, thinkered with by advances in science and technology,
immersed in Information and Communication Technology and by extension
information overload and knowledge explosion and also souring through natural
and man-made problems, needs general education, information skills and
orientation. The person should be gifted or learned in what it takes to survive
in a society that is changing on a daily basis
The
individual who can survive in the 21st century needs general
information, education and orientation in entrepreneurial education, skill
development, communication skills, diplomacy, religious tolerance, peace
education, security awareness, leadership skills, Information and Communication
Technology (ICT) skills, international understanding and healthy competition.
The list appears to be endless.
The Survivors of the 21st
Century Society
So
far, much of the presentations in this discourse have centered on the 21st
century and the requirements for survival to the neglect of who can make it in
the face of the perceived positive and negative challenges of the millennium.
Consequently, this section of the discussion is a deliberate presentation on
who has the requirements for survival in the 21stcentury society.
Borrowing a leaf from the requirements for survival as presented in the preceding
paragraphs, it is deductible that any individual who has general information,
education, skills and orientation on the major and minor milestones of the 21st
century, can survive and eke a living out of the century. In summary, it
suggests that the individual must be a total person. Dennis (2006),defines the total person as a
person who is prepared to face the challenges of life, because he or she has
the values, discipline, knowledge, preparedness, mentally, emotionally and
physically healthy person. For Answers.com (2016), the total person is one who
is prepared to face the challenges in life. This view is premised on the fact that
a person’s environment means everything around him or her and may have
influenced the presentation by Bullyxtreme (2016), that the total person
concept insures that our wheel of life roles evenly and that we pay attention
to all the six areas of life. These six areas of life are family and home,
finance and career, physical and health, spiritual and ethical, mental and
educational and social and cultural (Bullyxtreme, 2016; Dennis; 2006, Quizlet,
2016).
An
analysis on the presentations from Dennis, Bullyxtreme and Quizlet shows that
the three sources are united in the fact that the total person should be able
to summon courage to face the challenges of life in his immediate and further
environments and that he or she needs to be armed with certain variables, to be
able to face the challenges. These variables are what the present writers refer
to as general information, education, skills and orientation on the
characteristics nature of the society.
Universities as Makers of the Total
Person
Individuals
live in organized societies. They are borne in medical institutions, nursed in
the homes, educated in schools, take care of their health needs in hospitals,
get close to their creators in religious organizations like churches, mosques
and shrines, seek redress for wrongs done to them by other people in courts and
are laid to rest in churches, irrespective of the nature and type. This analogy
has been corroborated by Etzioni ( as cited in Haralambos & Heald, 2001)
Following
from the foregoing presentations, it naturally flows that man gets education
from schools or technically put, from educational institutions. In educational
systems and institutions, clients are introduced and made to internalize the
values of societies from one generation to another. In the Nigerian context,
education has three levels. These are the basic, post basic and tertiary levels
of education (Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2013). The basic level of education
with its accompanying attachment slays the foundation for all educational
pursuits whether at the post basic or tertiary. The post basic acts a bridge
between the basic and the tertiary, apart from serving as the preparatory
ground for tertiary education, while the tertiary level of education takes care
of teaching, research and community service apart from what modern scholars
prefer to call’ incidental functions’.
Developing the Total Person through
Higher Education in the 21st Century: The Challenges before Nigerian
Universities
Agreed
that society shifts the responsibility of educating its younger and needy folks
to educational institutions, it does not require excessive brain storming to
arrive at the truism that the responsibility of producing the total person lies
before the schools and in line with the thesis of this discourse, it lies
before the tertiary education system, which the present writers prefer to call
higher education. In the Nigerian environment, higher educational institutions
include the universities, colleges of education, polytechnics, and monotechnics
and allied institutions. In this discourse, the focus is on universities. Universities
are learning institutions that pre-occupy themselves with the job of teaching,
research and community services. Their basic functions constitute what Obamanu
(as cited in Nwideeduh & Afangideh, 2011) refers to as the tripartite
functions of the universities. However, scholars have added other functions to
universities and typify these functions as incidental functions (Nwideeduh&Afangideh,
2010; Afangideh & Aleru, 2013; Afangideh & Kpee, 2010). As part of
their teaching, research and community services endeavours, they use and work
with humans, who must be developed for their existence and that of the society
in general. This is where the production of the total person connects the
universities. In presenting the discussion on universities’ roles in producing
the total person, it is pertinent to reiterate the contributions of a renowned
Nigerian educational management expert and administrator, Professor Joel
Babatunde Babalola. Babalola (2009) observes that Nigerian Universities seem to
be producing ‘tankers’ instead of ‘thinkers’. To the scholar, products from
Nigerian universities are better as verbatim thinkers, who can only regurgitate
what they had been taught and when taken outside their comfort zones, they fumble.
Products from school systems who behave in these ways cannot fit into the total
person concept.
Further
to the foregoing, the universities have much to do, if they must produce the
total persons for human and societal consumption. This must be done with the
nature and characteristics of the 21st century in mind. Therefore,
the proceeding section of this discourse centers on what the universities
should do.
Firstly,
it has been observed that unemployment is one of the banes of the 21st
century society, universities must teach and make practical entrepreneurial studies.
This must be done with the intention to help their products take risk (good
risks) and acquire skills that would help them survive in societies emerged in
unemployment.
Secondly,
universities must teach their students communication skills. These skills
include, writing,speaking,sending, recieving and listening.In doing these,
their products would be equipped to flow in an era where there is information
overload, knowledge explosion and where there is wider interpersonal,
inter-group, inter-organizational and international connectivity.
Another
very important thing universities must do is to teach their students diplomacy.
Diplomacy is the normal and non-violent process of negotiation, trade and
cultural interaction between and among sovereign nations (Magstadt,2006).This
they have to do by reviewing their citizenship education, social studies and
social studies curricular.
Nigerian
universities must teach religious tolerance. This is so because the total
person should be able to accept that we live and operate in diversity in terms
of religion. In Nigeria, there are basically three main religious groups. These
are Christianity, Islam and African Traditional Religions. These groups hold
onto different beliefs, but have the heaven as the goal post, through
practising different forms of worship. It is not an understatement that Bornu
State in North East Nigeria is otherwise known as the Home of Peace and has
enjoyed this description since its creation. Where is the peace? Rivers State
is called Garden City and Treasure Base of the Nation. Where are the gardens
and treasures? Lagos State has been existing as the ‘Centre of Excellence’
Excellence in what? Kidnappings and armed banditory? Plateau is the Home of
Tourism, only a trial will convince you. These are indicators that all is not
well with us. There is need for the teaching of peace education in our
universities, so our children will be taught how to co-exist with others.
Abraham, Durosaro, Kpee, Edemenang, Okon and Odiba (2014) were therefore doing
the needful by dedicating their professional association book to the management
and planning of education for peace in Nigeria.
International Journal of Innovations in
Sustainable Development, Volume 7, Number 2, 2016
While
surfing the International Network, the lead author once stumbled on the
information that children in Egyptian Primary schools are taught security education.
This is not unconnected with the height of insecurity in the Arabian World
arising from the activities of Islamist terrorists. If the truth must be reported, conditions
such as these have become the portion of Nigeria. There are problems of kidnappings,
armed robbery, rape, arson, pipeline vandalism, drug addiction, trafficking,
piracy,among others. The list is endless Nigerian Universities students should
be taught to be conscious of those who perpetuate these menace. This, therefore
call for security instructions as done in Civil Service Training Centers. In
his contribution to the development of Nigeria,legendary Nigerian writer,
Chinua Achebe in his book ‘The Trouble with Nigeria’ notes that one of our
problems is a Failure of Leadership. Achebe (1981) notes that Nigerian leaders
had failed Nigerians. Today, Achebe’s observation was only a child who has now
grown to produce children who should continue in the failure race. This may
explain why there seems to be a failure of followership. Nigerian universities
should therefore teach good leadership and followership skills. When these are
done, the leaders and followers of tomorrow will be educated on what it takes
to lead and be led. It is heartwarming to note that Information and
Communication Technology is being taught in our universities Aware of the
nature of the society at the local, national, regional and global levels, there
is no alternative to this, Rather, all the universities should mount and run
degree courses leading to award of degrees in Information and Communication
Technology (ICT). Through this, the inter-connection, the 21st
century needs will be achieved.
Without
doubt, nations of the world adopt difference approaches in handling issues,
they operate different cultural behaviours and in a society where the world has
become a small village, there is need to expose students to international
cultural studies. In doing so, students will be introduced to the cultures of
other nation
Finally,
the globalized 21st century society encourages competition. This is
so because of the inter-connectivity and the free-flow of information and
products and the fact that every knowledge is for the consumption of the
international audience. Since, this is so, we have to learn how to compete in a
healthy manner and to do that which would be appreciated and acceptable to
others
Conclusion
The
21st century is not a traditional millennium. It has gone beyond
complexities with its ocean of positivities and negativities. To survive in the 21stcentury and
contribute meaningfully requires that the individual has general information,
education, skills and orientation. The one who has these attributes is the
total person who should be able to face the challenges of life after he or she
has been thoroughly taught entrepreneurship education, skill development,
communication skills, diplomacy, religious tolerance, peace education, security
consciousness, leadership and followership skills, Information and
Communication Technology skills, international understanding and healthy competition.
These are the roles our universities, should play the process of achieving
should start at no other time than now, as a stitch in time saves nine.
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