Inconsistent implementation of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) policy by Federal and States’ ministries of education is seen stalling the rate of innovation and industrialisation in Africa’s largest economy.
In the National Policy on Education (2004) the Federal Government had formulated policies meant to develop and promote the teaching and learning of STEM at various levels. This was embedded in the six years of primary school, three years of both Junior and Senior Secondary school and four years of university education (6-3-3-4 system), which has been replaced by the 9-3-4 Curriculum.
The policy prescribed that the Curriculum of Primary Education shall include among others: Mathematics, Science, Agricultural Science, Physical and Health Education etcetera and specified that specialist teachers shall be employed to teach subjects such as Mathematics, Science, Physical Education, and Home Economics. The policy maintained that teaching at the primary school shall be by practical, exploratory and experimental methods.
At the secondary school level, the policy stated that secondary education shall be for six years duration at two stages: basic and post-basic secondary schools. At the basic level (for mer Junior Secondary School), the students are expected to be taught among others: Mathematics, Basic Science, Basic Technology, Computer Education, and Agricultural Science.
Similarly at the post-basic level, students are expected to study Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Agricultural Science, Applied Electricity, Auto Mechanics, Building Construction, Electronics, Computer Education, Metal Work, Wood Work, and Technical Drawing.
“The 6-3-3-4 system did not fail because it was poorly designed; it failed because it was not properly implemented.
It was a system meant to help pupils develop hands-on experiential learning and to achieve this teachers needed to be equal to the task and the schools needed to provide the enabling environment, such as laboratories for basic science or introductory technology, only a few schools met these criteria and this has retarded Nigeria’s industrialisation by at least two decades” said Hamman Kwajaffa, Director General Nigerian Textile Manufacturers Association and Nigerian Textile, Garments & Tailoring Employers Association. At the tertiary education level, the policy specified that a greater proportion of expenditure on university education shall be devoted to science and technology.
It directed that not less than 60 percent of places shall be allocated to science and science-oriented courses in the conventional universities and not less than 80 percent in the universities of technology. It further proposed that admission into the technology and business courses shall be weighed in the ratio of 70:30 and called for the establishment of STEMbased institutions such as the polytechnic, monotechnic and trade centres. Oyewusi Ibidapo Obe, former vice-chancellor of the University of Lagos, pointed to a number of reasons why the STEM policy has not gained the expected traction.
“First is the issue of infrastructure and where students can practise the theories. Unfortunately the industrial backbone has been weak and the entire economy has been run as one big consumer market dominated by imports from all over the world.
Hence there are no outlets to practise these theories” the 65 year old professor of Systems Engineering said in an emailed response. Obe added, “secondly, the schools and institutions themselves need to be upgraded both for the human ware as well as the soft and hardware to enable the students study in a 21st Century teaching and learning environment.
We have started to have “in-breeding” in our University System. This is anti-innovation and progress. The quality of lecturers in our institutions needs an urgent audit.” According to David Akosa Okongwu, former Director General, National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), as at 2008 Nigeria’s National Research and Development (R&D) intensity under the Science and Technology Ministry was about 0.06 percent compared to South Africa’s 0.7 percent, China 1.40 percent and India 1.2 percent.
In this case, there is the need to beef up the R&D expenditure to yield a national R&D intensity of at least 1.0 percent by 2014 and to exceed 2 percent by 2018.
Nigeria’s current R&D intensity is 0.2. In the face of limited R&D intensity experts say STEM development would continue to suffer. “This cannot be otherwise in the face of poor resourcing of our schools.
When equipment is in short supply relative to student enrolment for STEM, the teacher has little choice than to skip experiments. What kind of experiments can you run with kerosene stove instead of Bunsen burner as revealed by the 2012 needs assessment survey conducted by the National Universities Commission (NUC)?
What kind of experiment requiring electricity and water can you run when power and water supply to the university is a mere trickle and the labs are not served? The questions are many” said Peter Okebukola, former executive secretary of the NUC and chairman Crawford Governing Council.
