A case for practical education

We will be normative and practical, so let’s get straight to the point. Start with the premise that education is meant to enable us solve problems (read, better our lives) not only at our present level but more importantly at the next level or better still at the next two, three, four or five levels. This is why we say we are preparing the recipients of education for the future. Early education is (or at least should be) meant to teach the learner and create in learning. Thus, good education is the best way to enable the learner, not only to cope with the future but also to shape their future. Ministry of Education’s (Mineduc) mission is ‘… to transform the Rwandan citizen into skilled human capital for socio-economic development of the country by ensuring equitable access to quality education by focusing on combating illiteracy, promotion of science and technology, critical thinking and positive values. …’ The latter part of the mission: ‘…promotion of ...critical thinking and positive values...’ constitutes the building blocks of innovation and creativity. Then begs the question; what is the best way of promoting critical thinking, for example? I daresay by making teaching and learning both participatory and engaging. In nursery school, it is much easier to get the children to participate a playful environment, then in a formal straight jacketed class. The story is the same at university. Group discussions, debates, field trips and presentations are still the best ways of teaching and learning. It is also stress free. And this ties with the old times too…education, informal as it was, involved practical, apprenticeship type of teaching and learning. A cattle keeper’s son would normally start off with grazing lambs, goats and sheep. The environment was playful, but the lesson was learnt, nonetheless. It is from here that one graduated to taking of the heard and by that time…about 5 to 10 years later they were thoroughly conversant with what was expected of them. Finland is considered to have among the most successful education regimes in the world (education index of 0.993). Their literacy rate is 100 per cent and enrollment from primary and secondary schools stand at 99.7 per cent and 66.2 per cent, respectively. The system is egalitarian with no fees paid by students (sounds like universal primary education).Two things stand out with regard to the Finnish education: one, the emphasis they place on early childhood education. According to Wikipedia, in Finland, high quality daycare and nursery-kindergarten are considered critical for developing the cooperation and communication skills necessary to prepare young children for lifelong education as well as formal learning of reading and mathematics, which begins at age seven, so as not to disrupt their childhood.Finnish early educators also guide children in the development of social and interactive skills, encouraging them to …to care about others, and to have a positive attitude toward other people, other cultures, and different environments. To foster a culture of reading, parents of newborn babies are given three books, one for the mother and father, and a baby book for the child, as part of the “maternity package”. According to Finnish child development specialist Eeva Hujala, “Early education is the first and most critical stage of lifelong learning. Neurological research has shown that 90 per cent of brain growth occurs during the first five years of life, and 85 per cent of the nerve paths develop before starting school (at the age of seven in Finland).Two; Tertiary education is divided into university and polytechnic (ammattikorkeakoulu, meaning “university of applied sciences”) systems. The trouble with our modern education is that it does not clearly get to the point; and when it does, it is in a roundabout way. Score A’s in Mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry etc…I could be a doctor, engineer, physicist, lecturer, etc. The learner does not even know what these jobs entail. We need to have more mentorships and career advisory. The critical question for us is simple; are we achieving the desired results?