ARE NIGERIANS IN AMERICA EDUCATIONALLY GOING BACKWARDS?
Nigerians in Nigeria do not celebrate high school graduation.
The optional school send-off party, marks the end of your sojourn in high school.
Welcome to America!
Nigerians in America celebrate high school graduations like weddings,
But not University graduations.
Could it be that many who graduate from high school,
Never make it through the university?
Or is it that a certificate, that guarantees you lifelong employment at a fast food joint,
The new educational standard for Nigerians in America?
Or is it a way of extorting money from other Nigerians?
Why an “open house” for your high school graduand?
In a house, sorry hall, instead of in your own house.
This glorification of a diploma that qualifies you,
For higher education should stop,
Or we lower expectations for our children.
Let sanity prevail,
A high school diploma does not call for celebrations but deliberations,
Soon a bachelor’s degree may become the new high school diploma.
Celebrations of high school graduations should be intimate family affairs.
And not festivities draped in buntings and balloons,
In a large hall, with live music or a DJ, and praise singers to boot.
There you authentically go, my friend, great master social critic. You are coming alive in the life of your people. Probably, our seeming joyless individual and family lives, instigates us to celebrate the really unremarkable events as you pointed out. Most of those who bask in such minor attainment are themselves not as such, top of the mountain gazers in terms of the meaning of education and are not even book lovers. They are mainly not great seekers after truth and the development of the human person and concomitant community and cultural development. Tallestman, now moreover, you really applied your sledge hammer to the right roughened end of the hot rod and teaming marrow of our idea of education, to make it less chaos. Thanks.
The truth must be told.