Schooling then and now

Schooling has always been a thing of joy, even though I cried when I was young because I didn't want to go to school, but it later turned out to be something I enjoyed as I grew older. A school is a place where good morals are inculcated in children and where knowledge is dispersed.

Being a student back then, discipline and fear were instilled in me. I was made to understand the importance of education, and that helped me value education so much. I went to an elementary school where they don't joke with knowledge. If you don't want to learn, you will be taught to love books.

Also, a secondary school where discipline is the motto is a school that does not condone any form of laziness or immoral acts. They made it known to me then that, no matter how rich you become, education is a vital asset everyone should possess.

Being a student then was fun in the sense that each student was made to know their capabilities. The school then kind of introduced competition among the students. No one would love to be regarded as a dullard, so each student does try their best to pass average or above average.

Good morals, discipline, competition, and decent dress are all the good values that made being a student fun then, and these factors have produced good people for society today. All these things are missing in our schools today.

One bad thing

Examination malpractice is one bad thing that was strongly kicked against as a student then. I could remember vividly that any student caught in that act would face several punishments and, at worst, expulsion. Knowing this, it creates fear in the hearts of the students not to be involved in such activities, and this made every student sit tight and face their academics squarely in order not to be regarded as dullards.

It's a pity today that examination malpractice, which was a bad thing then, is now being encouraged by schools. I could imagine schools providing answers to their students during external examinations.

This gave the students the confidence that they could pass even when they didn't read. Examination malpractice is now being regarded as "choco," a great means of passing examinations. You will see parents withdraw their children from one school to another because the school they attend doesn't supply answers during examinations.

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At the end of the day, such students would come out with a good result that they didn't work for. This is one bad thing, then, that students now enjoy. I had to write my secondary school leaving certificate examination (SSC) twice because, on my first attempt, I couldn't pass mathematics and physics. I knew I was weak in calculations, and to proceed to a higher institution, I needed these two subjects.

I had to sit for my WAEC the second time, focusing on my weak subject, because I knew my parents would not change my school for any reason. The only help my parents could render for me then was to employ a teacher to give me extra coaching on my core subjects as a science student. I was left to read and pass, which I was able to do after the second attempt.

Presently, I have two younger siblings preparing for their secondary school leaving certificate examination (SSCE), and they were so eager to leave their present school because some of their friends had left for a school that would provide them with "choco," so to speak.

I was able to stand as their antagonist on that; well, that's what they call me, and if I am for a better future, then so be it. I made sure our parents didn't change their school; I want them to sit for it and write it themselves so that they can know their capacity and intellectual activeness.

These days, schools have rendered their students's intelligence dormant by involving them in all these acts that are not helping their educational lives. This is a big difference between being a student then and now.

WHAT COULD BE DONE?

I will suggest that if this act can be curbed in all schools, students with integrity and discipline will be produced. Students who can be proud of their results are not the ones who don't know how they got the good results they are carrying about. That's why you will see many students today who can't defend their results.

Ministries of education and other educational bodies should create awareness and a strong rule guiding their interest in making schools worth going to. Adequate punishments should be laid out for schools caught in such acts. This will make every school sit up and value education more than profit.

Thanks for your time, and your comments will be appreciated.