Mathematics has always been necessary for industry, innovation and skills development in ancient Egypt, Greece and the Arabian Peninsula precursors of contemporary scientific and technological developments. Stephen Onyekwelu writes that Mathematics is critical for national development and points to the role of private sector actors.
In the 13th Century, Roger Bacon (1214-1294), an English Franciscan friar, philosopher, scientist and scholar stated: “neglect of mathematics works injury to all knowledge, since he who is ignorant of it cannot know the other sciences or the things of the world.”
This still rings true today. Responding to the question, how is mathematics and sciences important to development in Africa on Quora, an online website were expert views are exchanged, Evan Lee Fisher, Bachelor of Science (B.S.) Mathematics, California State University, said development in Africa will grow faster, better, and longer if many of the developers are African.
“To develop technology, you need to understand technology and to understand technology, you need to understand science and to understand science, and you need to know the language of science – mathematics.”
BusinessDay’s interactions with captains of industry, academics, university dons and consultants have shown an urgent need to quickly revitalise science education the bedrock of which is Mathematics.
“Science and Technology has not developed sufficiently well in Nigeria to influence national policies and ethos. Our Leaders are not thinking in a sufficiently scientific manner to champion technology as a vehicle to enhance accelerated national development. Unfortunately, in our world, driven by science and technology-no significant improvement in our lives can happen without focused development of science and technology and mathematics should be at the heart of this drive” said Oyewusi Ibidapo-Obe, professor of Systems Engineering and former Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos and an emailed note.
Interestingly, mathematics is one of the most dreaded subjects especially among secondary school students. Amidst the phobia, those who have taken active interest in the subject find it the most interesting area of study. The difference between those who love mathematics and those who do not is a product of several factors – interest, teaching styles of their tutor and several others.
Mathematics is a branch of science, which deals with numbers and their operations. It involves calculation, computation, solving of problems etc. Its dictionary meaning states that, ‘Mathematics is the science of numbers and space’ or ‘Mathematics is the science of measurement, quantity and magnitude’. It is exact, precise, systematic and a logical subject.
Experts also maintain that Mathematics provides deep reasoning that is unique to human beings. More importantly, they note that solving Mathematical problems helps the mind to reason and organise complicated situations into clear, simple, and logical steps.
As much it is seen as the soul of science, Mathematics is however dreaded by most students, resulting in an unimpressive performance in the subject at the examinations conducted by the major examining bodies such as the National Examination Council (NECO) and West African Examination Council (WAEC).
In the 2011 WAEC May/June Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE), only 41.50 percent of the candidates obtained credit in Mathematics, while only 24.72 percent passed the subject in the 2010 NECO May/June SSCE. This year, only 52 percent candidates had credit pass in Mathematics and English in the WAEC SSCE examination.
In his paper, Trends in Students’ Performance in Mathematics, Udonsa Effiok, a Mathematics lecturer at the Federal College of Education, Yola, Adamawa State, identified a number of factors that impeded students’ achievement in Mathematics in senior secondary school examinations.
These include: shortage of qualified Mathematics teachers, poor facilities, inadequate equipment and instructional materials. Others are: method of teaching, large class size, Mathematics phobia/fright, and low level of interest by students, parental influence and undue distraction from unproductive use of social media networks.
Similarly, Stephen Onah, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Mathematical Centre (NMC), blamed serial poor performance in Mathematics on unqualified teachers, as well as the international standards maintained by the examination bodies.
The Mathematical Association of Nigeria said the poor performance were student-related, teacher-related and government-related. Che Agwagah, the association’s president, observed that quite a number of Mathematics teachers, especially at the secondary school level, were weak in knowledge, content and pedagogy.
To face the challenge headlong, investment in education across the world has assumed an entirely new frontier and approach such that governments and corporate organisations have come to realise that building capacity in Mathematics represents a concrete pillar for development.
One of the corporate organisations on this path of building human capacity is Promasidor Nigeria Limited. Through its Cowbellpedia initiative, the company has provided a platform to stimulate interest and reward excellence in Mathematics among students in Nigeria’s secondary school in nearly 20 years.
The interventions include Cowbellpedia Secondary Schools Mathematics TV Quiz Show, Cowbellpedia Radio (a Mathematics class on radio) and Cowbellpedia Mobile App (Mathematics Q&A mobile application).
Through these platforms, Promasidor has been able to arouse and re-awaken the interest of students in Mathematics at the secondary school level and further reinforced the importance of the subject
NECO has commended PNL for stimulating the interest of Nigerian students in Mathematics through the Cowbellpedia Secondary Schools Mathematics TV Quiz Show, sponsored by Cowbell, the company’s flagship brand. Speaking to newsmen at the finals of the 2017 Cowbellpedia Secondary Schools Mathematics Television Quiz Show in Lagos recently, Charles Uwakwe, NECO Registrar, said that the competition has considerably reduced the phobia for Mathematics among students across the country.
Compared to the enrolment figures of 27,000 participants in 2015 and 46,000 in 2016, 52,000 students participated in the 2017 nationwide examinations, out of which 108 moved to the second stage, which is the Television Quiz Show with five of the students having a perfect score of 100 percent in the qualifying examinations.
Uwakwe, commended Promasidor for the Cowbellpedia initiative and pledged the council’s continued technical support for the project in appreciation of what he described as “Promasidor’s great Corporate Social Responsibility to the Nigerian society.”
In the last two decades, the mathematics initiative has produced champions and heroes. This year, Munachi Ernest-Eze, a student of Loyola Jesuit College, set a new record by winning both the Junior and Senior categories of the Cowbellpedia Secondary School Mathematics Television Quiz Show within a period of two years.
Emmanuel Mebude, a student of Ogunlade Memorial Secondary School, Surulere, Lagos, also set a new competition record in speed and accuracy. He answered 17 questions in the “60 Seconds of Fame” segment in the preliminary rounds of the senior category.
Greater Tomorrow International College, Arigidi-Akoko, Ondo State also got an award for producing finalists back-to-back in the last three years. These are: Evans Owamoyo in 2015 (Junior category) and 2017 (Senior category), and Dennis Balogun in 2016.
The Ambassadors College, Ota, Ogun State received an award for its contribution to Mathematics education. The school, which boasts of 17 Mathematics teachers, produced eight out of the 12 finalists in 2016, and won the two categories that year as well as the teachers’ edition. Oluwanifise Onafowokan, this year’s first runner-up in the senior category, is also a product of the school.
In the 2017 breath-taking finals, Jesse Uche-Nwichi of Graceland International School, Rivers State and Ernest-Eze emerged champions in the Junior and Senior categories respectively. For their feat, they were rewarded with N1 million each and an all-expense paid education excursion outside the country.
Onafowokan and Owamoyo were the first and second runners-up respectively in the Senior category, while Oluwafemi Adeyanju of Jesuit Memorial College, Port Harcourt, Rivers State and Ezekiel Ekanem of Advanced Breed Group of Schools, Sagamu, Ogun State finished first and second runners-up in the Junior category.
The first and second runners-up for each category won N750,000 and N500,000 respectively.
Each teacher of the 2017 champions received a cash prize of N400,000, while those of the first and second runners-up got N300,000 and N200,000 respectively. Also, the winning schools won Mathematics textbooks, desktop computers and printers
Anders Einarsson, the Managing Director of Promasidor Nigeria Limited, reiterated the commitment of the company towards education but also assured that the company would continue to support the academic development of Nigerian children.
