As the preparations for the WAEC and JAMB exams approach, I feel a sense of loss on my part. I can't do more than my students since they have more subjects to read for, whereas I am only preparing them for two subjects: English Language and Literature in English.
To me, it seems that students nowadays are not serious and are not truly ready for the examination. During our time, students burned midnight oil just to excel in their studies, but what do we see now? Instead of focusing on their studies, students use social media as a way to take breaks. While there are many benefits to the internet age, the negative effects on students are significant. Many students “sleep on the internet” these days. There is a particular app called TikTok, which students have abused greatly. They are often found shaking their bodies for tokens and gifts on the internet.
The internet should be seen as a tool to enhance their learning, but to them, it is an avenue for unseriousness. In our time, help was not as readily available. I call it “help” because many people no longer see anything wrong with it, even the stakeholders in education—some of whom even encourage it. It is a shameful habit that has eroded our educational sector deeply. This “help” refers to examination malpractices. Students don’t want to stress themselves because they believe they will be helped. Do I blame them? Who will see a helpless chicken and not want to take advantage of it?
It is common for someone to relax when they know there is a solution to their problems.
Regarding JAMB teachers, there is a particular book recommended for students for the use of English. It is titled The Lekki Headmaster. It sounds like the title of a humorous village headmaster story, but in reality, it isn't. The headmaster is the name the protagonist of the novel acquired long ago, not necessarily at his current place of work. Bepo is a principal who loves his job dearly and would do anything to protect it—even when the opportunity to relocate abroad presents itself on a silver platter. He is stuck between staying in Nigeria and migrating, something that many would think twice about. His wife, Seri, doesn’t want him to stay in Nigeria anymore since their kids are all abroad. He shares his experiences about the happenings in the country, highlighting both the good and bad sides of it. He is eventually on the verge of giving in, even after having a dream about his experience during an excursion to Badagry, the route where the slave trade once occurred. He hears a voice from the slave master asking him to join, but he refuses. In the end, he returns to his job as a principal in the school where he has worked for over 20 years.
