The coming of education in Nigeria

HISTORIES
The coming of education in Nigeria
The period 1842-82 was marked by intensive missionary activity and
expansion in Southern Nigeria. During this time the church
missionary society, Methodist missionary society, the United
Presbyterian Church of Scotland, the Quaibo mission, the primitive
Methodist missionary society and the Basel mission firmly established
themselves in this area.
Up to 1882 the colonial government in Nigeria paid little or no attention
to the education needs of the people and the field was left entirely to
the mission. This period can therefore by justifiable termed the era of
exclusive Christian missionary education in southern Nigeria. The
missionaries without exception used the school as means of conversion
and each found that children were more valuable for this purpose than
adults though adults were not ignored in their evangelical programmed. In
addition to book learning vocational training was added to the programme
at Abeokute, for instance, and later at Onitsha, Lakoja, and Calabar,
agriculture, carpentry, brick laying, ginnery etc. were encourage by the
C.M.S, the church of Scotland and other mission. In Topo near Badagry
the famous Topo industrial school for delinquent children was started in
1876 by the Roman Catholic mission. During the period under review the
missions, while emphasizing religion, set the moral tone for their members.
Character-training, a stern code of European ethics and the like were
enforced. Naturally conflicts developed as the traditional African way of
life conflicted with the European. Polygamy was the order of the day, but
a good Christian was expected to be monogamous. This caused no small
conflict within the church and the issue was destined to plague the
church to the present day. Some of the missions, for example the C.M.S
and the Methodist, set up management boards to help regulate the
curriculum, teachers’ salaries, conduct etc. the achievements of the
missions during this period of government indifference to education
included: translation of the bible in to local languages for example, Yoruba,
Ibo Efik and Nupe: introduction of vocational or industrial education
character-training, training, employment, payment of teachers and
establishment of a code of conduct for teachers and pupils.
Lack of official education police however, resulted in the
following.-
A. Adequate financial support and control.
B. Uniformity in the condition of service of teachers.
C. Adequate supervision of schools-building, teachers, pupils etc.
D. A common syllabus, standard text books, regular school hour etc.
E. A central examination system.

Development of Technical Education in Nigeria

HISTORIES
DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNICAL EDUCATION IN NIGERIA
Technical education had a slow start and development less quickly
than other forms of education in Nigeria. This was partly due to
the fact that the voluntary agencies which pioneered western
education in Nigeria were unable to increase or popularizes technical and
vocational education on the same scale as literary education since the
former is much more expensive in term of staff and equipment. In the
case, the Christian missions were more interested in a native’s ability to
read the bible than in his ability to turn screws and prime water pumps.
The situation was further complicated by the fact that most of the
British colonial policy-maker were literary men and women who had
studied classics at the universities of oxford, Cambridge and London. The
highest level of technical education is the degree courses in mechanical,
civil, electrical, agriculture and chemical engineering run by all the
Nigerian universities. Below this are the first five post secondary
technical colleges located across there cities in Nigeria, Enugu, Kaduna,
Auchi, Lagos and Ibadan. These colleges train at senior technical level and
offer two or three year course in commerce, accountancy, secretary ship,
civil, mechanical and electrical studies leading to the intermediate
examinations and diplomas of the appropriate British professional bodies
particularly the city and guilds institute of London. Admission to the
technical colleges is on the basis of passing the West African school
certificate examination or the ordinary general certificate of education
(GCE) of London University. In the late 1960s a move to change the name
and functions of the existing trade centers, technical institutes and
collages was made in northern and southern Nigeria. In the northern
states most of the craft schools have been in corporate or change into
technical colleges. The technical colleges in Lagos, Ibadan, and Kaduna
have been upgraded to become polytechnics and as a result their curricula
have been broadened. They now provides courses in higher studies,
leading to the higher National Certificate and Higher National Diploma
(H.N.C and H.N.D).