The educational system in Nigeria is often praised for producing some of the brightest minds in Africa. However, there is a less talked about but unappealing aspect of the intense academic competition and individualistic culture it breeds.
Years ago, while in primary four, I had a friend by the name of Busi who was deficient in a particular subject and planned to sit beside me in the examination hall for help. We were unfortunately separated by the invigilator. Busi kept looking back to where I was seated, and I felt so much pity for him that I wrote the answers on my question paper and gave it to him on my way out of the hall. I felt elated that I had saved a soul. A few moments later, there was an uproar in the hall; Busi had been caught and did not hesitate to volunteer my name as the source. Of course, I denied knowing anything about the write-up when asked by the headmaster as my late father was the chief inspector of Education for that state and would skin me alive at such information. My intelligent headmaster went about his investigation by accepting my innocence and expressing his confidence in me. Some minutes went by in his large office before he asked me to help him write a few statements on a plain sheet of paper. I willingly helped to create the evidence that aided my guilty verdict. He brought the two write-ups side by side and once again asked firmly “Feyi, who wrote this information?” All I could do was burst into tears while he gave me a good bargain not to tell my father in exchange for twelve strokes of the cane. This experience unconsciously created a competitive mindset as no one had any counseling sessions with me afterward.
After over 400 exams later, I found myself in a UK university for a two-semester session during which I had only one conventional examination with every other coursework dependent on interaction and cooperation with other students to get the information I needed to make up reports for my evaluation. This baffled me as in Nigeria, conventional examinations are the major way of appraising and evaluating students’ performance and capabilities. It took me several weeks to adapt to this new system and an even longer period to change my ideology.
Fast forward to my first experience at the Lagos Business School, this same mindset of hoarding information for individual benefit alone was entrenched in a few colleagues who seemed not to want to share information available to them even though the school system is not one to rank individual performance alone. I gradually realized the effect of the school’s (LBS) system of utilizing case studies and group-based approaches on collaboration and willingness to share information to aid one another’s success.
It then dawned on me that the educational system in Nigeria places a heavy emphasis on individual academic success, which often pushes students to focus on achieving the highest grades possible while neglecting teamwork and collaboration, thereby creating a competitive environment where students feel the need to outperform and outshine their peers at any cost.
This competitive culture breeds individualism rather than collaboration. From a tender age, students are pitted against each other and taught to view their peers as competition. Group projects and teamwork are rare; Instead, it is every student for themselves in pursuing academic ascendancy. This flies in the face of modern workplace practices, which increasingly value soft skills like communication, collaboration, and emotional intelligence.
This calls for a shift in the educational system to encourage collaboration, community, and Critical thinking. Schools should prioritize teamwork and the development of soft skills such as communication and empathy.
As we look towards a brighter future for our country, it is clear that the current educational system has contributed to the promotion of unhealthy competition and individualism. It is time to reevaluate the system and implement changes encouraging collaboration and grooming healthy relationships.
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