Dear Editor,
We frequently struggle to understand why so many of our young people are underperforming in school and are unmotivated to seriously pursue academic studies.
Repeatedly, we have reproached our teachers for this dilemma. We theorise that their instructional practices are wanting and do not effectively engage students. Some of us have even been deluded into believing that all, if not most, teachers perfunctorily attend to their professional responsibilities. Sadly, we missed the bigger picture.
Have we considered the limited opportunities that are provided for our young people? When they excel in high school, the paucity of scholarships and internship prospects render them almost stagnant. When they borrow from the Students' Loan Bureau and successfully complete tertiary studies, they usually wind up either unemployed or underemployed and bankrupt. Now, how do we then persuade our young people to view education as a social and financial propellant?
Please, do not tell them about journeying overseas to seek betterment. We cannot always purchase a visa and a one-way ticket out of this quagmire. And no, we cannot always tell our youth to start a business. These cannot be their only options.
I am calling upon our ministers to do more. Our youths' window of escapism can no longer hinge on nefarious acts, big or small.
Let us prove to our children that it pays to be educated. If we cannot successfully convince them in this regard, we will become a doomed state.
Shawna Kay Williams
shawna201@gmail.com
Where is the light at the end of the tunnel?
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We frequently struggle to understand why so many of our young people are underperforming in school and are unmotivated to seriously pursue academic studies.
Repeatedly, we have reproached our teachers for this dilemma. We theorise that their instructional practices are wanting and do not effectively engage students. Some of us have even been deluded into believing that all, if not most, teachers perfunctorily attend to their professional responsibilities. Sadly, we missed the bigger picture.
Have we considered the limited opportunities that are provided for our young people? When they excel in high school, the paucity of scholarships and internship prospects render them almost stagnant. When they borrow from the Students' Loan Bureau and successfully complete tertiary studies, they usually wind up either unemployed or underemployed and bankrupt. Now, how do we then persuade our young people to view education as a social and financial propellant?
Please, do not tell them about journeying overseas to seek betterment. We cannot always purchase a visa and a one-way ticket out of this quagmire. And no, we cannot always tell our youth to start a business. These cannot be their only options.
I am calling upon our ministers to do more. Our youths' window of escapism can no longer hinge on nefarious acts, big or small.
Let us prove to our children that it pays to be educated. If we cannot successfully convince them in this regard, we will become a doomed state.
Shawna Kay Williams
shawna201@gmail.com
Where is the light at the end of the tunnel?
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