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EDUCATION, WORK AND PRODUCTIVITY IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
by Idowu Biao Department of Adult & Continuing Education University of Calabar
The Chair of the conference, The Chief Host, Prof. Ekanem Braide, Vice-Chancellor, Cross River University of Technology, the Guest of Honour, Prof. Eno Bassey, Cross River State Commissioner for Education, the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, Prof. Owan Enoh, Honoured Professors, Gentlemen of the Press, ladies and gentlemen.
It is not usual to have philosophers gathered with the view to discoursing issues as practical and pragmatic as work and productivity. All gatherings of philosophers are regarded as gatherings for games of ideas, discussions of ideals and even a theatre of utopian concerts. Yet, philosophers can be as pragmatic as technology and as theoretical as science.
EDUCATION WORK AND PRODUCTIVITY
We are called upon here to discuss education, work and productivity; three variables so carefully chosen as to suggest linkage and interrelationship. In other words, we are gathered to look into the interconnectivity among education, work and productivity.
Education is both a process and an outcome; it is the process of acquiring information, knowledge and skills; but it is also the ability to demonstrate the possession of such information, knowledge and skills so as to qualify to be referred to as educated individual. Therefore, within the term “education” is embedded the concept of productivity as it is the demonstration of the existence of information, knowledge and skills acquired through education and operationalisation of same that an educated individual is identified and recognized. In other words, if a person behaves in such a civil manner as to be noticed and appreciated, if a person’s act and behaviour is overtly backed up and directed by relevant knowledge, such a person is said to be educated.
This therefore constitutes one knowledge paradigm within the framework of which education is a product imbibed as input, a process of demonstration of the existence of input and application of same to the environment as work and the nature and quality of the application of input to environment as productivity.
However, sight is not lost of the fact that the establishment of a more pragmatic and practical relationship among education, work and productivity is the goal of this conference. In other words, the goal is the exploration of the links which do exist or which can be established among education, work and production of goods and services with the view to advancing social development.
EDUCATION IN THE WORLD
Although the world has experienced great educational traditions such as the African traditional education, pristine Aboriginal education, pristine Islamic education and clan and tribal education, that which is universally accepted as education today is the Euro-Americano-centric type of education.
From the 15th century when Europe made the first massive outing from its borders in search for raw materials and especially from the 19th century, when the Industrial Revolution in Europe compelled that continent to ruthlessly scavenge for raw materials all over the world, this Euro-centric type of education has been gradually spreading through the world. Nowadays, it is through the United Nations Organisation (UNO) that the Euro-American type of education is being consolidated with the promotion of such world educational projects as Education For All (EFA), the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and other such earlier educational projects.
For example, EFA directs that between 1990 and 2015, all nations of the earth should provide basic education to all children, youths and adults living within their borders; MDGs project directs that Universal Primary Education (UPE) should be provided to all boys and girls living on planet earth by 2015 and beyond.
Myriad monitoring agencies and activities exist to ascertain progress made on these prescriptions and directives. For example, one such monitoring concluded in 1990, fingered 9 countries including Nigeria as nations retarding the development of the world in view of their large populations and high rate of illiteracy within their borders (New Delhi Declaration 1990); the latest monitoring carried out in this area in 2005 unfortunately found out that instead of 9, the countries that are throwing spanners into the wheels of world development have become 12 with Nigeria still in attendance.
Apart from the existence of a mosaic of experiences and projects designed to promote Euro-American education in all continents of the world, powerful international organizations remain the backbone of the Euro-American type of education that is here the subject of our discussion. Such international organizations include but are not limited to the United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the United Nations Children’s Emergency Funds (UNICEF), the United Nations Development Programmes (UNDP), the Association For the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA), the Latin American Statement for Education For All, the Arab Network for Education For All (ARABEFA) and the Global Campaing For Education (GCE).
No other type of Education on earth has this massive and powerful support; this impressive support therefore makes of the Euro-American type of education, the education format of the world.
Whence Came The Euro-American Type of Education?
The origin of this education must be traced to ancient Greece 3,000 years earlier than now. Ancient Greece endowed the earth with most noble educational practices and theories; we learn this fact through the writings and postulations of ancient Greek philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle to cite but a few.
The well known and reliable Spartanic Greek education got reformed into the New Education System in the 5th century BC and finally spread to Europe a few centuries later. The Spartanic system of education is a pretty old system of education which was nevertheless well organized and which is enduring as it re-echoed through other newer Greek educational systems and continues to be examined even up to our days. The curriculum of the Spartanic system of education promoted military education and the teaching of epic and lyric. It emphasized discipline of the body and mind but it was simple in design; the epics and lyrics in the main, eulogised ancestral heroic achievements and invited and spurred the younger generations to emulate those laudable feats of the past.
However, by the 5th century BC, ancient Greece underwent extensive economic and political transformations that necessitated the adoption of a new system of education. By the end of the 4th century BC, ancient Greece had made some exploits in its conquest bids so that its economic fortunes had become bright and glorious. Indeed a people that was known to be frugal and simple, by the end of the 4th century BC had started becoming demanding in his tastes and in his decorative choices. Additionally, a society, where authority of elders and royalty held sway for many centuries, began to experience incidences whereby such authority was sporadically questioned. All these changes in actions and consciousness necessitated the fashioning of a new educational system that will both accommodate and reflect this changing consciousness of the people. The search for this suitable education eventually led to the establishment of what history books refer to as Greek New Education.
The New Education had a number of interesting features which also endured till this day. First, it was a departure from the Spartanic Education in many respects; for example, discipline which was the cornerstone of Spartanic education got relegated to some background or at least lowered in the New Education; while Spartans maintained ancient poets on the curriculum, New Educationsits introduced relatively new and recent poets into the curriculum; also, the New Education was complex as it provided for many categories of learners including those beyond the age of 18 years. Basically, the New Education had provision for two main categories of learners, namely, the youths between the ages of 1 to 18 years and those beyond 18 years. The youths were taught poems, songs and some amount of mashall arts while the adult class was taught rhetoric and mathematics.
While elders were acknowledged teachers in earlier Greek Education System, sophists were the leaders and teachers during the era of Greek New Education. A sophist is a wise person or sage; although this terminology later assumed the connotation of an itinerant teacher. During the era of New Education, Greece, as a result of its wealth, attracted from far and near, acclaimed authorities in all branches of knowledge. Such eminent persons came from all the four cardinal points of the earth to sell their wares (knowledge) in Greece. So respected and distinguished were they that many Greeks were ready to part with some of their wealth to acquire rare knowledge. And the era of New Education flourished for about 5o years during which period some notable Greeks learnt and mastered the techniques of the sophists.
The first Greek and most spectacular teacher to beautifully demonstrate the skills of the sophists in public places was Socrates (469-399 BC). However,
With the rise of Macedonian Empire and the eclipse of the Greek States, the civilization of Greece stepped out of its national limitations and became the common civilization of all the nations on the shores of the Mediterranean (Boyd & King 1972:9)
Thus Greek education reached Europe and spread from Europe to European colonies; this education has, over the last two millennia, developed and undergone many reforms which enable it to be perceived today as school based formal education, out-of-school non-formal education and a more elastic learning format known as lifelong learning.
EDUCATION AND WORK
There is a general belief that education leads to efficient work which in turn leads to social and economic development; in other words, the more educated or literate a population, the better would it work to bring about economic and social development. This belief was particularly popular and vibrant when in the early 1960s, a book edited by Smith (1965) and entitled Education and economic development was published; this book equally carried an article written by the editor himself that was entitled Literacy and schooling in the development threshold: some historical cases.
This book, that was basically made up of a collection of articles including that of the editor himself, argued passionately in favour of the positive correlation that was perceived to exist between education and work and development. The publication of this book, at a time most African nations were being granted political independence, did not go unnoticed. The book turned out to have a profound psychological effect on the African elites who found their earlier suspicion confirmed. Most newly independent African nations therefore embarked upon massive expansion of the formal education infrastructures they inherited from the colonial masters with the hope that this will bring about both social and economic development.
According to World Bank Report (1988: 12 & 13) between 1960 and 1983 the number of students enrolled in African institutions at all levels, quintupled; primary school enrolments increased the most in absolute terms as enrolment even exceeded the fifth fold; the number of secondary schools trippled and secondary school enrolments went up three folds; the number of teacher training institutions went up three folds and students’ enrolment in those institutions increased three folds; the number of universities doubled and a dramatic increase in university students’ enrolment was recorded. Additionally, the number of teachers increased about fourfold at primary school level, eightfold at secondary school level and threefold at the tertiary level during this same period.
When this situation is analysed in figures, it is found for example, that while in 1960, Nigeria’s year of independence, the country had 15,703 primary schools, 883 secondary schools and 2 universities (Adesina & Johnson, 1981:6), by 1991, the country ran 35,446 primary schools, 5860 secondary schools and 31 universities respectively (FGN, 1991). By the year 2006, the liberalization policy of the Federal and State Governments in all sectors, had facilitated the advent of private, voluntary and government primary schools the number of which is now about 202,000; one hundred and two secondary schools and 76 private and government universities equally exist in 2006.
Side by side with the expansion in the formal education sector, non-formal education was being provided, albeit on a lower scale, to farmers of cash crops in Western Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire.
All was going well until the first half of the 1980s when an economic recession crept in and began to negatively affect both the structures and developmental plans put in place by African and developing countries. And for the first time, African faith in the positive correlation linking education to development was shaken.
Analysis of Developing Countries’ Socio-economic Performance
With the crises of the 1980s that brought about the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in Nigeria, the refocused UJAMAA Programme in Tanzania, the renewed Nkrumaism through Rawlingism in Ghana and other forms of adjustments in other countries, the first logical need was to determine the source of the crises. After the source may have been identified, analysis of the factors involved and recommendations for way out and way forward would be expected to be made.
A few contributions have been made aimed at clarifying the relationship existing between education and work and development as it concerns developing countries. Such contributions include the works of Biao (2001), Biao and Biao (1997), Yusuf (1975), Youngman (2005), Adick (1998) and Thompson (1983).
Biao (2001), while making a contribution to an international conference of Teacher Education in Thailand through a paper entitled “Matador Teacher Education for Africa in the Twentieth Century” said:
Although Africa experienced great educational expansion between 1960 and 1983 and although teacher training endeavour knew tremendous expansion during the same period, Africa continues to be plagued by serious social and economic crises. Current analysis shows that political instability begot by corruption, illiteracy, poor health delivery and poverty are the malaises confronting Africa. These malaises would not be eradicated through the educational system and teacher training programme currently run by African countries. If these countries are interested in making any significant progress in the 21st century, they must address the identified malaises through the means of education. The main group of workers best suited to help African countries eradicate these ills are teachers. Teachers are particularly useful in this exercise because traditionally the African teacher is viewed and accepted as a reliable change agent.
However, before he or she could be depended upon in the present exercise, he or she must be made to undergo a new type of training, which is here referred to as “MATADOR TEACHER EDUCATION”. Basically, the matador teacher education programme advocates an eclectic teacher training to carefully selected student teachers. The characteristics that the would-be student teachers are to possess include a stout psychology, an above average I. Q., fairly healthy physiques and a mentality of campaign. (Biao 2001:1).
Biao and Biao (1997) had earlier on submitted that the first source of Nigerian educational crises is to be found in the fact that western education as originally conceived, is irrelevant to the educational needs of Nigerians; they continued by submitting that:
The second source of the crises is to be found in the inability of the country to adequately fund formal education which is promoted by government because of the illusion that this kind of education is capable of bringing about a respectable amount of private and social returns in terms of human development and the economic activities it would generate (Biao & Biao 1997: 69).
After using both quantitative and qualitative data to support their argument, they eventually proposed the following system of education as substitute to the existing Nigerian educational system of the time.
Yusuf (1975) had found out, while working with farmers in Tanzania that literacy education does not necessarily make an individual a good or successful farmer unless the literacy education is deliberately tailored towards achieving the goal intended by literacy education programme developers; in this case making an individual a good cocoa farmer or a successful cassava farmer. He therefore went ahead to advise literacy experts to name and define the type of literacy education they intend to give the target audience which itself must be clearly defined and delineated well ahead of the commencement of literacy education.
Currently, one may discern traditional literacy, functional literacy, prose literacy, document literacy, work-oriented literacy, quantitative literacy, visual literacy and oral literacy to cite but a few as differentiated types of literacy; that which is advanced by Yusuf is that each of these types of literacy cannot yield any satisfying results unless it is properly directed towards the goal intended.
Youngman (2005) while making a contribution from the podium of an international conference holding in Cape Town South Africa, wondered how the training of adult educators on both academic and non-academic levels could be related to the needs of the labour market, so that job opportunities may be created for adult educators.
In other words, the mere training of adult educators does not guarantee work or create jobs for these trained adult educators; however, where training is provided with an understanding of labour market behaviour or with collaboration with the labour market, then availability of jobs can be guaranteed.
Adick (1998) described a situation in Republic of Senegal where formal primary schools were being deserted by pupils because both parents and pupils could not see the relevance of education provided in those schools with realities in society. As a response to this social protest, government introduced the concept of ECOLE NOUVELLE (New School) whereby the community determines what is to be learnt by the pupils with the government providing logistics support and additional basic education input in whatever curriculum the community may have decided on.
This way, Senegal has been able to maintain an equilibrium between school curricula and life in the community with employment fairly guaranteed while schooling is on and after sch0oling has come to an end.
Thompson (1983: 96-103) carried out a succinct analysis of education related social crises in developing countries when he submitted that education of developing countries could easily produce more educated persons than the economy can employ because first, such systems may end up producing persons with the wrong kind of skills; secondly, where governments of these countries fail to create jobs on a continuous basis, the products of their educational systems would be faced with stern joblessness as education by itself cannot create jobs; thirdly since salaries paid to educated personnel in poor countries is “substantially higher by comparison with average per capita income than is the case in richer countries”, developing countries’ economies would be able to absorb only a small number of educated persons produced by their educational systems.
Here then is the summary of the performance of developing countries it relates to education, work or job opportunities. Clearly, equilibrium between education and work is yet to be established in these countries. Where then does lie the problem? Is Euro-American type of education to be banished from developing countries? Is our Africanness or Asianness to be reaffirmed and reestablished with the view to displacing Euro-American education? The answers to these questions can neither be “yes” nor “no”. the answers must be found somewhere between “yes” and “no”.
PRODUCTIVITY
At the beginning of the 21st century, indeed in a sporadic manner, especially when such institutions as International Monetary Funds (IMF) and World Bank (WB) intervene in a country’s management, massive retrenchments of the work force are usually undertaken; the reasons for these retrenchments, are often that the retrenched workers have become unproductive or under productive.
In economic terms, productivity means “the rate at which goods or services are produced, especially output per unit of labour” while in ecological terms, it means “The rate at which radiant energy is used by producers to form organic substances as food for consumers” (The American Heritage Dictionaries 2006).
Although productivity may be discussed in terms of economic activities or in terms of ecological activities, the former is emphasized in the present discussion. Consequently, “In a business or industrial context,” productivity will mean “the ratio of output production to input effort;” “the productivity ratio is an indicator of the efficiency with which an enterprise converts its resources (inputs) into finished goods or services (outputs).” (Mc Grawhill 2006)
However, Seah (2006) adds to the discussion, the human fulfilment aspect of productivity; he submits that, irrespective of outcome of external assessment, as long as a person feels satisfied with his or her output on a job or activity, such a person is productive. In spite of his theory on the human fulfilment aspect of productivity, Seah does acknowledge the importance of the economic dimension of productivity.
Within the industrial and government environments, three common types of productivity measures have been identified and adopted; they include “partial productivity”, “total factor productivity” and “total productivity” (Mc Grawhill 2006: 1 - 2).
Partial productivity measure is one in which only a single type of input (e.g. direct labour hours) is selected and monitored constantly or daily; total factor productivity measure is one that monitors two input factors (Labour and Capital) while total productivity measure is one measure that includes into the productivity monitoring process, all the input needed in the course of the making of a product or in the process of offering a service.
Productivity therefore is about first getting a work to do and secondly, doing this work in a manner as to bring appreciable economic and social returns. The first part of the equation is to get a work to do and this is the crux of the matter.
Currently, many youths who have completed full cycles of primary, secondary and tertiary education have no work to do. Is it that developing countries are still under the illusion that education can create jobs? Or is the posture that government’s responsibility is to give education and it is the schedule of the private sector to create jobs?
If the second alternative is the answer, then the governments of developing countries would have been seen as having let down their p0pulations. This is because creation of jobs is a responsibility that no government must shy away from. It is only after the populace has been equipped in work that productivity may be meaningfully discussed. In a situation where a vast majority of the populace is underemployed and where this majority takes on work just for the purpose of collecting some salary at the end of the month but not because there exists concrete tasks to be performed, our discussion of “productivity” will only be an idle discussion. Neither will it lead anywhere, the discussion of “productivity” when the worker himself or herself cannot appreciate the contributi0ns he or she is making to national socio-economic psyche and to his or her personal psychology.
Productivity becomes an issue therefore, only when a healthy work environment exists. By healthy work environment, it is meant availability of work for most persons which enables these persons to visibly and tangibly contribute and invest both into national granaries and into their personal psychology.
QUO VADIS
Where then do we go from here? A rethinking of both the role of government in job creation in developing countries and that of education in relation to work must be undertaken.
Without prejudice to the on-going review of National Policies on Education across developing countries with the view to addressing the challenges of the third millennium and more specifically those of the 21st century, I should like to recommend the following:
1. Each developing country must carry out assessment of three areas of production by supplying answers to the following two questions:
a) What are those areas of the national life that offer opportunities for productive work?
b) What are the needs of developed countries in industrial raw materials, in leisure, in arts and aesthetics and in learning that developing countries can respond to and satisfy? c) What are the needs of other developing countries in industrial raw materials, leisure, arts and aesthetics and learning that a developing country can satisfy?
2. When this “Needs Map” is clear, education policies should be developed consistent with the needs identified. The implementation of education policies such as these will more likely create more work and influence productivity more positively than the current practice of education for education sake.
3. Since change is the only permanent phenomenon in this material world, whatever may be obtained as answers to the questions posed earlier will tend to change with time. It therefore behooves education planners and implementers to develop and apply adequate skills for promptly reviewing policies and for fast tracking the implementation of reviewed policies.
4. Philosophers, that is, thinkers are needed by all societies; these are the think tank that ensures the continued progress of society through skillful direction and redirection; therefore, while much of national educational systems may have thus been made so utilitarian and functional, provision should equally be made within this system for opportunities to train high calibre scientists, Arts experts, mathematicians, policy strategists, and specialists in philosophical matters.
CONCLUSION
While current education formats run by developing countries do not have the capacity to create many jobs, opportunities exist for improvement. There exists vast areas of untapped opportunities in the developing world as they concern job creation; these areas may include agriculture, tourism and the hospitality industry in general, arts and crafts, traditional medicine and oral literacy and literature to cite but a few.
When systematic researches are carried out in these areas and into the recommendations made here, it might be possible for developing countries to begin their journey out the quagmire that is joblessness begotten by inadequate education system.
REFERENCES
Adesina, S. & Johnson,T. (1981) Cost-benefit analysis of education in Nigeria. Lagos: Lagos University Press
Adick, C. (1998) “Formal and informal basic education in Africa-complementary or competitive” EDUCATION 58:50-64
Biao, I. (2001) Matador teacher education for Africa in the 21st century Proceedings on Thailand International Conference on Teacher Education: 21-34
Biao, E. & Biao, I. (1997) The need for structural adjustment of the Nigerian educational system in the 21st century. Tambari 4,1:68-72
Boyd W. & King. E. (1972) The history of western education London: Adam & Charles Black
Federal Government of Nigeria (1991). The National mass literacy, adult and non-formal education. Abuja: FGN.
Seah, D. (2006): Clarifying the meaning of productivity http://davidseah.com/archives 23/06/2006
Smith, A. (1965) “Literacy and Schooling In the Development Threshold: Some Historical Cases” in Smith, A. et al (eds) (1965) “Education and Economic Development”Chicago:Longman.
The American Heritage Dictionaries (2006). Dictionarieshttp://www.answers.com/topic/productivity 10/15/2006
Thompson, A. R. (1983) Education and development in Africa. London: Macmillan Press.
UNESCO (1990) The Delhi Declaration: Framework for action Paris: UNESCO
World Bank (1988) Education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Washington D.C.: World Bank.
Youngman, F. (2005) “Concerns and pointers in the training of adult educators in institutions of higher education in Anglophone Africa” An introductory paper delivered at IIZ-DVV-sponsored international conference on training of adult educators- Cape Town South Africa.
Yusuf, L. (1975) “Literacy and job performance among farmers in Tanzania” Adult Education 6, 1:10-19
A CITATTION ON Prof. Idowu Biao of the Department of Adult & Continuing Education, University of Calabar
Professor Idowu Biao is a Professor of Adult Education. He holds a Diploma in Journalism from the London School of Journalism, a Bachelor of Education (Adult Education), a Masters in Education (Adult Education) and a Ph.D. in Adult Education all from the University Lagos.
He is an international scholar as he has published more than 50 articles many of which are to be found in international journals. He also has more than 80 monographs to his credit. He has attended more than 70 national and international conferences in the field of adult education and education.
He came back a week ago from the University of Glasgow UK, where he is currently working on an international research project which seeks to find out the impact which non-formal education may have on poverty reduction in developing countries. Prof. Idowu Biao is married to Esohe Patience and the couple is blessed with three children.
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