DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

FACULTY OF SOCIAL ANAD MANAGEMENT SCIENCE

BAYERO UNIVERSITY, KANO

 

 

Student Representative Forum (SRF)

The challenges of education today, especially at tertiary level reveal the complexity of what action to take. Infact, the situation is much more complicated than we see on the University Campuses. It is like the problems are being hidden as are rarely put to a higher level of discourse. Except in petty talks which do not identify the problem from a scholarly perspective, talkless of addressing them intellectually.

The University system is still, as in 1980s and 1990s in deep crisis which has led to a confusion about the objective and future choices of the colleges. This can be seen in a very low standard of education given, which reveals low quality of teaching and research. Indeed, because of lack of debate and play with global ideas structural conflict exists but unnoticed between the new rising profession of teaching and research as "privatisation" and the classical one which is otherwise.

Let me pose a single question: what do those of us i.e. students and teachers who are within the system do to confront these challenges now, in order to raise the level of standard of education.

There are many fronts which would be tackled individually another time. For now, what we the teachers and the students do to organise ourselves in the industry of production of knowledge or simply of ideas.

One expression of the decline of education is that there is also disappearance of democracy which by extension will go to liberal education in relationship between teachers and students.

Democracy practice at level of tertiary education is not just given by the teacher when he/she likes. Students must organise at the level of learning relationships to make democracy work. Then learning will become exciting and interesting and consequently ideas would be seen moving. And in the end education would become for transformation of individuals and of the learning environment.

This is strictly a perspective about classroom learning which may spread outside the classrooms to the entire school environment, but is not about school politics if at all it exists and not about state politics. In the past i had tried cyber club; internet association; and anti-plagiarism club. The achievements are impressive. They are about the spread of internet for learning and research among students of the Department of Political Science.

Now, is another initiative called Student Representative Forum. This is Students Committee to exist in all classes of M. M. Yusif. It is called a forum because all seminar leaders will constitute this forum, representing their seminars.

The SRF will have a chairman to be elected by the members themselves. Its work will include among other things;

1. To share information about the work of various seminars.
   
2. To observe and advise students who are not serious with their studies.
   
3. To encourage culture of readings among students
   
4. To encourage exchange of ideas including of common texts without dangerous competition
   
5. To promote the ideas contained in the paper "principles of teaching and learning in classes of M. M. Yusif.
   
6. To integrate the students, inspite of distinct social backgrounds for the purpose of learning and dissemination of ideas.
   
7. To show, by way of example a disciplined conduct in class work.
   

From school to National, students are potential agents for democracy and development. They had played this role before but now are atomised and dispersed by neo-liberal agenda. They have to start again from the beginning. Turning education for development of self, school environment, and the nation.

History has uncovered that students could keep themselves inside the university wall developing and exchanging ideas about their community and the larger society.

In Nigeria, it seems that development and vision for development are dead. There is no political agenda of an alternative. We are not begging for students to come out for organised politics but to debate ideas for an alternative development path and political strategy within the existing neo-liberal capitalist system. You may also pose the question: what would happen to National Economic and political development in post neo-liberal society?

M. M. Yusif

April, 2011