By Kenny Ola
While it is not the intention of this piece to send a note of condemnation to Nigerian government for failing to fund students of humanities, this piece is geared towards reflecting on some questions which might aid our understanding of the Nigerian government’s move to deprive humanities students’ right to proper funding and the need to call students’ and lecturers’ attention to the state of humanities courses in Nigeria.
Any thoughtful students who have come about the recent publication from NELFUND will uncontrollably resort to some reflection of what could humanities students have done to be denied of national disbursement that students of science and technology enjoy as if they are entitled to it. What relevance do science and technology courses have rendered that makes their learners open to many opportunities that even humanities students beg to enjoy? Is education truly about upgrading grades and leaving brains “unupgraded”? Of course, if we reasonably look at it, departments of science and technology are known for their incessant production of first class students which such rate cannot be compared with humanities departments. Now, is it the grade that gives students of science and technology the unusual reverence or the brain that has produced such undistorted grades?
Enough of all these questions. Nigerian government’s claim to deny humanities students of adequate funding is a testament to the reality that any education that does not bring relevance is irrelevant. To call a spade a spade, we all talk about scientific invention and technological innovation. Have we ever wondered what is inventive and innovative in humanities courses or what have humanities students done that enthrals many into delving in the study of humanities courses? The reality in Nigeria attests to the undeniable fact that many art and humanities courses are irrelevant except law. How many Nigerian parents would willingly allow their children study English or history when they know that no relevance has been recorded or no positive outcome can be achieved from studying these courses? Now, humanities courses have been made to be studied by ordinary students who are unable to get their desired courses and the extraordinary ones are believed to be in law or science and technology departments. And like the popular Yoruba saying: we should first relate a matter to ourselves before relating it to others. If you are the Nigerian government, will you humbly afford to waste resources on courses whose relevance is hardly felt in the country?
Many might see the writer of this piece to be supporting the government’s claim or condemning students of humanities and their courses. But no! It is aimed in this piece to cast humanities education in the right light. We all blame the government for failing to fund humanities courses and their learners but we fail to blame ourselves for only passing exams and not passing relevance that will aid the growth of the nation. I won’t mince my words. The Nigerian government’s decision not to fund humanities courses and their learners sends the message that humanities courses are not only irrelevant but also the students studying them are not capable of bringing growth and development to the country. All students of humanities must wake up from their slumbers if they desire a positive change in the Nigerian government’s attitude towards their education. Like I have established in one of my public essays, education is only valid if we can put our grades into upgrading ourselves and the nation at large.
We say humanities courses are intended towards building human thinking capacity and behavioral patterns and we never channel our thinking and behaviour in making the nation a better abode. Sadly, even lecturers in the humanities departments do not make students see the importance of these courses beyond passing examinations and that is even if they are truly willing to pass you. It is often claimed that writing belongs to language and literature disciplines and we watch science students excel excellently in the business of writing while language and literature students engage in serious writing only when taking school exams. The Nigerian government is always willing to establish universities of science and technology and we never ask why the government is never concerned about establishing a university that solely deals with art and humanities courses. Aren’t all of these worth reflecting upon by students of humanities who desire to be relevant in their country?
I conclude this piece by leaving the general readership to reflect on the necessary steps needed to bring life into the supposedly lifeless humanities courses for them to be as productive and sought after as other courses in science and technology.
•Kenny Ola writes from the Department of English Language, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
