by Bamidele Itunuoluwa

22 February 2023

“Everybody is a genius. But if we judge a fish by its inability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” – Albert Einstein.

This is a popular saying that has gained traction in the education sector recently about 21st-century learners and their needs. Many a time we judge the cognitive abilities of learners, from the mirrors of different stakeholders’ expectations and yardstick; the parents, the children, the community, the school, and even our metrics of evaluation when it comes to performances.

What we have failed to recognize, however, is the various fishes in our classrooms that have been restricted to the forest, climbing trees. Fishes that would have swum to the ends of the world even if the oceans have no end.

But what is the place of policy? How does it limit what we can achieve in the field as education leaders? What do we need to consider going forward while formulating need-based policies? What prepares our children for the best learning experiences according to their skills? And what are the results of an effective and optimized policy on education at all levels? These questions will be the compass for this discussion going forward.

Education policy consists of the principles and decisions that influence the field of education, as well as the collection of laws and rules that govern the operation of education systems. It is imperative to ascertain that policy also holds the systematic intervention to improve the quality of education at all levels. No doubt, this is the powerhouse of execution of any education system, it determines the quality of education the people get, as well as the ramifications of instruction and pedagogy. 

The Nigerian Education across board runs a 6-3-3-4 system of education, this implies that every child has to spend at least 16 of their formative years in school and learning. According to educational psychology, these are the critical years of development of any child. How then must we approach in the engagement of making the future for this little child in tandem with best policy practices?

The case study of the education system forcing fishes to climb the tree is a path frequently traveled in terms of occurrence, and research has shown that 7 out of 10 students would pick the common cliché professions, either because their friends, parents, or teachers influence them, or because they think being a doctor or a lawyer will make them very rich and famous. While this might not be a wrong motivation in itself, individual abilities, talents, and skills go beyond that. In fact, recent data gathered in a school exposed that 11 out of 20 children get their choices of careers vetoed by their parents or guardian, or narrowed down by the choices obtainable to them in schools. But when we examine how the future is made, and what the future will be for an individual, families, nations, or the world we live in, we must think about the place of policy in helping to remedy this challenge. From field experience, I understand that we have children who if asked about their life’s ambitions would look you in the eyes and say “A comic book writer, musician, graphics designer, or content writer, something totally unconventional,” times have really changed. 

Two in every three children would totally prefer to have a hands-on engagement, something that exposes them to do and to act, rather than cramming all day. I was teaching cell division one day in class and one of my students demanded to see physically how the mitotic phase transit from Prophase down to Telophase, hilarious right? Because this simulation is only possible with a virtual laboratory or a real laboratory proceeding, but here we are in class, for one reason or the other. This is the generation we teach, the ones who anticipate a full exploration of all possibilities.

The domains of learning rightly put set aside three sacrosanct abilities by which a child learns. The cognitive domain, the affective domain, and the psychomotor skills. These are not there by mistake, and it is time we explored the ramifications of achieving each child’s potential according to what interests them. What they are passionate about, what they would joyfully call a career without having to call it a bore or a chore, I believe is what we term as finding one’s purpose. This we can make happen by revamping our policies to cater to the needs of the 21st century while offering a wide range of options, diving into vocational, entrepreneurship, digital literacy, public speaking, coding, soft skills, etc. as subjects in schools. Additionally, there is a need to do a curriculum overhaul to the obsolete ones, so as to fit the 21 st century needs. As a matter of urgency, we need to provide a space in the government policy-making sect where reviews are being done occasionally to find loopholes, and ring improvements as well as revisions to the current policy, as well as enact them.

Every child can learn, but with different psychologies. No child is a failure, he might not be good at math, but here he is, perfect with colors and painting, who knows? Maybe he is the latest Leonardo Da Vinci in town. And if our children showcase an appetite for a wholesome curriculum and a specialized experience, our policies must provide for the rising needs of the future. No child should be made to look stupid just because the system does not understand their needs, just as fishes thrive in water, monkeys thrive on trees and every man with his turf.