EDUCATION VERSUS TALENT

By TOLULOPE WILLIAMS

Text copyright © 2017 Oshota Toluwalase

All rights reserved

This article is dedicated to the Almighty God for the inspiration, wisdom and guidance and provision of good health and a sound mind to make the book a reality.

And also to my mother who has been very supportive in all my endeavours and making every effort to ensure that I become a great personality in life.

And finally to my friends and well-wishers; the readers out there who will have a wonderful reading experience and share God’s inspiration through this book.

EDUCATION VERSUS TALENT

EDUCATION

On dictionary terms “education” is a term which describes the knowledge, skill, and understanding that you get from attending a school, college, or university. And education as it stands today has really achieved the function of helping people acquiring diverse skills and hence a lot of innovations have been into existence today. With the different forms and advancements in education children have been easily drilled to develop physically and mentally and as well unleash their potentials and fulfil unimaginable dreams.

Here in Nigeria we have notable Nigerians who have gotten the best use of education a list of notable Nigerians who have attained the highest degrees in education include:

v Goodluck Jonathan Ph.D. zoology

v Professor Wole Soyinka PhD literal studies

v Alike Dangote PhD Business Administration

v Late Chinua Achebe PhD Literal Studies

v Dr Nnamdi Azikwe PhD Doctorate Studies

And the list goes on just to mention a few. The advents of education has brought about developments in various ways especially in the Nigerian economy such developments include:

·        The introduction of mechanized farming: for countless ages, farmers have been acquainted with the use of crude implements and substandard methods for achieving agricultural aims, spamming acres of land are cultivated with the use of cutlasses, hoes, rakes, watering cans etc. However despite the invention of tractors, bulldozers, irrigation systems, harrowers and ridgers which have immensely eased the pain in agriculture for man, a piece of land or a forest can be cleared by deforestation, harrowers can now turn up the soil, ridgers can now make ridges and the seeds can be planted and with the aid of an advanced irrigation system, the whole farmland irrespective of how massive can be watered all in one day as against the use of crude implements and a great workforce which will still take days for the same task to be accomplished. Thou mechanized farming has contributed immensely to the development and functionality of man, it also has its fails in the sense that it has successfully cut down the rate of employment, by reducing the workforce as the machines involved in the agricultural process are manned by only few hands as against those who would work with crude implements. If it required ten men initially to clear an acre of land in 20days, there is a possibility of two men clearing the same acre of land in just hours with the aid of mechanized farming, thereby rendering the other eight jobless

·        Telecommunication: As the population of people at a particular geographical division increases, the need for an effective means of propagating information also came on the rise. As population increased, people occupied more space and had a wider ecological niche and as a result the initial use of town criers to dissipate information was gradually weakened as it wasn’t easy for a human to go round a whole country on foot all in the name of passing information. Hence the use of written letters and covering a longer distance in days was also initiated to ease the burden. However, the geometric growth of the population of the world at large also rendered crude means of dissipating information such as the use of town criers, postal services and intercom almost ineffective. There was no room for scrutiny of messages as the number of days for it to be delivered is of high consideration, information may not be fully processed before it is put up for delivery. Most often lives have been lost and properties have been confiscated due to delayed information by reason of various factors affecting the efficiency of the deliverer of the information, ranging from illnesses, to even accidents and also the inability to locate the destination of the information on time especially when delivery is made to the particular destination for the first time. Education has brought more effective means information transmission in a matter of minutes over unimaginable distances even between countries. The same information a postal agency will deliver in two to three days can be delivered by an electronic mail in just minutes.

·        Physical being and wellness: education has been a great eye opener to beneficiary health tips and precautions that has enhanced the life span of man. In ancient times, man had always believed that small pox was an infliction of punishment by their so called “gods” and they had to go through difficult rituals to cure the infection, however the revelation made by education of the disease being a mere bacterial with an easy cure and even having a preventive measure has saved a lot of lives and the unnecessary cost of treatment which is readily affordable. With the knowledge and skill attached to education, the awareness of physical exercises such as running, walking, skipping, sportsmanship etc. as a means of keeping fit and trim physically has become rampart and constructive in the well-being of humans. Humans now know that it is easier to stay healthy having known the necessary tips such as good exercises, vaccination against diseases, the awareness of retroviral drugs which neutralizes the effect of HIV and AIDS. The gruesome elimination of twins as cursed children was brought to a halt via the discovery of the possibility of an ova (egg) splitting into two or two different eggs being fertilized at the same time resulting in the development of two children in the womb at the same time which are eventually born as twins. And education has helped tremendously to stop the killing of this children who were once believed to be children of misfortune.

·        Moral standards: with the teeming population, education has helped in grooming responsible individuals, there are loads of engineers, doctors, fashion designers, event planners etc. These individuals have been inspired through education to achieve a wide variety of goals and ambitions. Education has successfully created the competitive skills needed to survive in the world at large. The inculcation of religion into individuals has to a large extent keep in check the negative attributes of an individual and the positive attributes are adequately explored. For instance, the knowledge of Christian and Islamic Religious Studies respectively in schools especially at the secondary level, has successfully furnished the morals of the students. The knowledge of God and His principles, has produced students with stronger and more uniform attitudes towards religion and morality. Crime rate has been curbed due to these moral standards installed into the students who naturally share love and care for one another and also realize the need to look out for one another. With the knowledge imparted by education, an average knows that it’s not right to be a hooligan on the streets, they also have the initiative of being well disposed to their future ambition, children who are fully armored to the teeth with adequate religious upbringing always have their heads held high in the society, they are warriors of peace as against their counterparts. Godly children are raised, homes are kept sealed from divorce, good legacies are maintained as a result of education in religious manifestations and tactics to continually combat moral decadence.

·        Science and Technology: this is one of the most influential pathways in which education has made the world a better place. The education system in Nigeria has enlightened people on the awareness of various technological developments around the world. Thanks to computers today, information however voluminous can be processed in seconds. A company can analyze its yearly financial records in just minutes with the aid of a computers as against the use of ledgers and voluminous paper work in ancient times. If a relative has travelled for a long while, the knowledge of the fact that the person can be reached in seconds through the massive inventions of Telecommunication has become unimaginable. Phones that could only make calls and transmit text messages can now access social media, send and receive voice notes, video calls and chatting etc. The advancement of technology has brought the entire world to your doorstep.  Proper education has given the knowledge that one can save money at the bank as against the old methods of saving money which include burying money in underground tunnels or burrows which were not safe methods, or worst still keeping voluminous money at home hereby attracting lucrative armed robbers. With the innovation of the cashless policy, traders don’t need to travel much, as monetary transaction can be made online through the internet and also via internet enabled phones. Automated teller machines (ATM) are readily available for easy and convenient withdrawal and cash deposits. The list is endless with education bring the birth of these inventions.

·        Financial independence and marital bliss: in marriage, besides love and trust, one of the solid pillars that holds a marriage together is a good source of income for the breadwinner of the family. The knowledge of education, especially in the religious view is of the opinion that the man in the home should be the one providing for the members of his family and the wife is a personal assistant to the husband in taking care of the affairs of the home while the husband is away to work, rather than being a career woman who would virtually have no time for her family. From the religious aspect of education, it would be signed that the man is the one who does the tilling of the ground and all activities which generate the income for the family, while the wife meant to render assistance. Most marriages and homes have failed because the wife has become the breadwinner of the family. The man loses his pride and respect as the one in control. Therefore, n adequate knowledge about the principles of marriage via education places both couples in their rightful places. Education gives a step-by-step guide on how one can planning and making marriage a haven of peace and also reduce the rate of divorce worldwide. The knowledge of education also gives an insight into the various ways by which indomitable financial standards can be attained, being a successful entrepreneur can be achieved by being educated as a business administrator, though education one can become an iconic engineer work with a big company and attain the necessary financial power to support the family and the list is endless.

·        Time management: education has successfully made man aware and time conscious, man can make a judicious use of his time to achieve the best in all regards. Education makes an office worker of the time to resume work and be accustomed to the number of hours to be spent at work for productivity. An average student, especially at the secondary level, knows that school officially resumes by 8:00am and closes by 2:00pm and within that 8hour period, a number of subjects is scheduled to be treated. Though unknown to the students, the arrangement of time/subject is a means of making them acquire appropriate planning and timing skills. A student would know what time to wake up, deal with the chores, and based on the distance of residence from the school, he or she needs to know exactly when to leave for school. All these are schemes that teach the student indirectly how time should be managed, knowing what to do and at what time. And so an average child would develop being time conscious when he eventually grows and begins to work under a company or even gets established in his or her own business. Time managed successfully leads to a successful business.

·        Skill Acquisition: Peter doesn’t have encouraging grades in class, he is the best sporting student in the school especially in football. Marilyn is an average student, yet she has brought countless awards in various tie and dye competitions. Benjamin was constantly mocked for his hilarious and irrelevant questions in biology class, yet most of his peers look up to him for wonderful diagram presentations. Education has always been a very good pointer towards skill acquisition and development. The students mentioned earlier are typical examples of people who have been able to find their fields of specialization and they have found pleasure in what they can do best. With the aid of education, an average citizen is now free to exercise great and inborn skills that will reduce errors and promote efficiency, and that is why Peter will do the nation proud and even his family because there would be a flow of work which he enjoys doing so there won’t be fatigue, Marilyn has successfully carved a niche in tie and dye for herself and her brand will be outstanding, Benjamin would go ahead from painting biological diagrams to painting the whole world. Therefore, education is very efficient in bringing out the best in any individual who would make impact the world at large. We have engineers, accountants, motivational speaker, writers, entrepreneurs, politicians, business moguls etc who have been transformed through education to live according to what they have been destined to be.

·        Social life: during secondary school education especially, an average introvert is forced to interact with his peers which he wouldn’t do on normal circumstances, literary and debating societies brings both the introvert and the outspoken to argue topics constructively and this brings about the students commuting themselves to hard work in form of researches and proper organization of their work and then they finally compete with their team mates by arguing constructively to educate their audience and the entire populace. This activity helps an individual develop interactive skills in the environment, motivational speakers have been generated, who have been capable of saving lives by giving hope to the hopeless through their motivational talks. Seminars are being organized on various walks of life to enlighten people on principles pertaining to business, religion, marriage, entrepreneurship etc. Through education this has been made possible and many lives have been transformed by these seminars. By reason of communicative skills acquired by pastors and other many lives have been regenerated, a lot of youths out there now have defined structures for their existence. I remember how reading books from authors like Chinua Achebe, Professor Wole Soyinka, Bernard Shaw and many more has inspired me to be a successful writer too. Speakers of the likes of Fela Durotoye, Samuel Adeyemi, Matthew Ashimolowo have inspired me to be a speaker and never be afraid of delivering speeches, preaching the gospel on buses enroute a particular destination has become a part and parcel and hence and forced to believe that education generated skills are “contagious”.  

·        Art and culture: Nigeria is a nature full of diverse ethnic groups and cultures. The three major ethnic distributions in Nigeria consist of the Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo. These tribes are now sub categorized into various into well over 250 ethnic groups and distributions. The Hausa’s who dominate the northern Nigeria, are subdivided into the Fulani’s, tiv, shekiri and the rest. The Yorubas who dominate the south western region of Nigeria also are classified into the egbas, the ijebus, Beni and other classes. And likewise the Igbo tribe are also classified as Bini, ijaw, urhobo and many more. The knowledge of education gives a broad scope on the description and dispersion of these ethnic groups, their various arts and cultures from books written by local authors, Nigerians who were born and bred overseas now have necessary information at their tips despite being far away from home. Social sciences also deal with the various ethnic distributions and cultural disposition of each ethnic group for the purpose of being well informed just as the slogan says “when you are well informed, you will not be deformed”. The adequate knowledge about the cultures of a particular ethnic distribution has curbed excessive tribal wars. In Yoruba land for example the younger ones greet older ones with respect and conspicuous gestures such as prostrating by the males and kneeling by the females. These form of greeting is highly treasured among Yoruba people as the greatest symbol of respect, Hausa’s tend to favor and welcome all tribes as long as one is fluid with their language. The understanding of these cultures helps to curb tribal wars.

·        Law and order: educated citizens of any nation are duly acquainted with the laws and orders of the nation. These laws are put into place to check criminal activities and preserve the lives of an average citizen from danger and death. For stealing there are penalties for offences like, armed robbery, rape, theft, financial crimes etc. The knowledge of education empowers the citizens to know the effects of these crimes and the punishments attached and these helps to check the activities of individuals. Statistics has shown that the rate of crime has been drastically reduced because an average individual is aware of the punishment involved in any crime perpetuated through the knowledge of education and hence the fear of facing these penalties keeps the activities of citizens in check. Several children have been guarded from becoming criminals and irresponsible citizens in the society through the appropriate knowledge of education. Students are engaged in various activities that keep them focused towards building a better future and keeping their focus on their potentials and strengths, they are also trained to stay away from bad gangs, and fraternities which execute evil in the society. Various criminal and justice personnel have been founded to combat crimes in the society, the police, EFCC, CID, Air force etc. are all military personnel trained and empowered through education to curb criminal activities in the nation and globally. The training they undergo were all developed by the intuition of someone, who had the vision and which was probably developed by other people.

TALENT

The role of education cannot be looked down upon, it has been defined as the skills, knowledge and understanding gotten from an institution for the purpose of the improvement of an individual. However, the invention of the aircraft was recorded to be from the Wright brothers Orville and Wilbur, a thought into who taught the brothers what to do suggests that there is a phenomenon. John Pemberton became the pioneer of the worldwide beverage known as Coca Cola. He was a pharmacist but then all the drugs he acquired skills to invent were not bringing the success he desired and then came the initiative to even the number one beverage of the world today. However, till death he couldn’t get his innovation to a wide audience and later on that was achieved by Asa Griggs Candler who took it upon himself to design the logo for the beverage and as well make adverts of the product on calendars, billboards and today coca cola had its sales in millions of dollars all around the world.

Oprah Gail Winfrey is one of America’s greatest television personality and reality TV show mogul with the popular Oprah Winfrey Show which has been media tool for adding life to the lifeless and giving hope to the hopeless. she was born to a teenage single mother, she stated that she was sexually molested at the age of 9. Oprah also had a son who died at infancy and at her tender age of 14 years. Oprah was initially named Orpah according to the Bible character in the book of Ruth but was mistakenly pronounced for Oprah and that name got stuck. Being raised from a poor background, she struggled to get into high school and her ad-lib skills was unleashed and she got her first job with the press and later on she launched her programme which was aimed at empowering people spiritually involving confessions from marriages, homes, workplace etc. Many are the broken homes that are unified, people have retraced their steps, drug addicts have been restored to their normal lives, displaced children have found comfortable homes. Here comes the big question, where did she get her ad-lib function which beget all her achievements?

Here in Africa, the list of great people is endless, prolific Nigerian - English actor, John Boyega initial was enrolled in theological school by his father who wanted him to be a preacher, but he had begun acting before he was noticed by an actress at the tender age of 14 who enrolled him in a theatre school at peckham and later on he started as Finn in star wars and other films. His first ever role as an actor at the age of 9 was in a play where he acted perfectly as a leopard his other works include “live another day”, “half of a yellow sun”, “imperial dreams” etc he was of no doubt that there was something special about him, that made him  exceptional in a field where he hadn’t even acquired the skills he needed to be perfect in movies and theatre arts and more so he had parents that were supportive about his dreams and aspirations and were not selfish in their own desires. John fulfilled his dreams and he was a vessel of honor and pride to his parents and to the world at large via the entertainment industry. Definitely education is the key but with this feat achieved by the prolific actor, something else has a foot hold over education

Linda Ifeoma Ikeji is Nigeria’s highest paid blogger of all time, who began her writing career at the age of 10 and when the internet became more pronounced, she ventured into blogging and modelling after which till date she focused on blogging as her major occupation which has paid off for her. She supported herself and family through her part time jobs as a waitress, blogger and writer while she studied English language at the university of Lagos. At her age in the 80’s writing was for the older ones like Tai Solarin, Wole Soyinka and so on. For her to have had a unique writing experience at the age of 10 explains that there is indeed something greater than education, or probably something that served as the basis for education today.

Dele Momodu, the CEO of ovation international, a magazine that has gained grounds in publishing the fame of notable people around the world from the African tabloids. He is the last born of three, lost his father at a tender age, has a mother who never gave up on him, had to be exiled during the Abacha regime for treason charges, he studied English language but became one of the best in journalism.

Bukola Elemide, popularly known as Asa “a yoruba name for hawk” was born to Nigerian parents in France. Her parents later on came to Nigeria when she was just 2 years old and she listened to musical records which her father had at home. She went in pursuit of her career in music and she released her first single titled “eye adaba” and “jailer followed and she has amassed several awards from both France and Nigeria. And till today her style of music remains unique.

Oluwagbemiga Olabisi Sesan is Nigeria’s biggest social entrepreneurs and ICT developer, though he had a degree in electrical electronics engineering, sesan is well known for consultancy and His consulting experience includes assignments completed for numerous institutions, including Microsoft, Harvard University and United Nations agencies, among others, in over 30 countries. A Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneur of the Year, and former member of the United Nations Committee of eLeaders on Youth and ICT, he is a CyberStewards Fellow Crans Montana Forum Fellow Archbishop Desmond Tutu Leadership Fellow , Ashoka Fellow, Ashoka Fellow, Our Common Future and Cordes Fellow, served as a member of the Presidential committees on Harmonization of Information Technology, Telecommunications and Broadcasting Sectors (2006), Roadmap for the Achievement of Accelerated Universal Broadband Infrastructure and Services Provision (2013), was listed by CNN as one of the Top 10 African Tech Voices on Twitter, and by Ventures Africa as one of 40 African Legends Under 40.

These people and many more were pioneers of a special gift within them, manifestations that came naturally, they exhibited skills they were not trained for and was absolutely different from what they acquired at and that definitely means that there are other set of skills which education accountable for. There is a source for these skills and the Bible gives an account of a God who displayed great skills in the creation. He brought was is now seen from what wasn’t seen according to the account of John. And in Genesis 1:26 God created man in His own image and likeness. When you look in a mirror, what you see is your image and likeness. And just as our image in the mirror replicated what we do, then we are bound to also replicate the attributes of the Lord. Physics has it according to the propagation of light through a mirror an object gets an image of highest magnification when the image and object distances respectively are the same how does this tally in the Spirit realm? The closer you are to God, the greater his abilities and qualities and vice versa. Invariably, just as brought up the visible from the invisible the Wright brothers were able to bring a visible aircraft from the invisible visions from the core of their minds

John Pemberton visualized a beverage that would take on the world and he brought it into reality and today Coca Cola makes sales in its teeming millions throughout the globe. Paul in the Bible was skilled to be a lawyer according to Gamaliel, but throughout the new testament epistles mostly written by Paul he was more pronounced as an evangelist – a skill he acquired from the supernatural, according to our Lord Jesus Christ.  These talents which are divinely given are in all ways superior to education which is a foundation for the basis of expressing talents. If the Wright brothers had not laid the foundation for the invention of the aircraft, there wouldn’t be other inventions such as the helicopters, unmanned jets, rockets etc. Hence it is safe to conclude that talent gave birth to education which only gives others who haven’t discovered their talents have the control of skills already laid down by other people to occupy till their talents can be discovered. Statistics even had it that only 10% of the entire brain capacity to invent has been utilized despite all the magnificent wonders of man in the world today. Thanks to the traces of talents to the bible and the author of the bible - God, we now have reasons to believe that truly God exists, and though invisible Himself, every visible work on earth shows His existence and power.

Humans are now slaves to education, as they apply it wrongly, talent is like a shoe of a particular kind. For instance, just as there are various kinds of shoes ranging from leather, swede, to rubber shoes, likewise talents come in various types and manifestations. Leather shoes need a solid polish, and a red coloured solid polish can’t be applied in black leather shoes; moreso a solid polish is not suitable on swede shoes hence a toddler who delights in dismantling electronics is not fit to be a lawyer neither is a teenager who drives a great audience with his or her voice is fit for medicine and surgery –  the idea of the shoe and polish. Little drops of water make a mighty ocean says the African proverb and that means that the greatness of a nation starts from the family setting. First, citizens must strive to build Godly marriages, where God and Hid words form the basis of the home. When a home has either a nagging wife or a nerdy husband, then the product of that marriage will be wayward children. Children are fast observers of what goes in between their parents linger on till death. A teacher once yelled at nursery toddler “what’s your mothers’ name baby came the muffled reply of the kid” that was what the kid heard his dad call his mother. So the activities and expressions of children is a deep reflection of the status of the couple that gave them birth. Parents must take time to study their kids, the man of the house shouldn’t be an early morning walker and a night crawler. Mom’s shouldn’t be career such that they abandon the changes and gifts showcased by their kids. These kids don’t have the experience it takes to utilize their gifts to the benefit of the family and the nation at large and that is why the parents have passed through their stage to acquire the necessary experience to put their kids through so that kids don’t make the same mistakes that their parents have made.

Parents Should keep a close eye on their kids especially from the age of 5 - 7years for unique abilities and help them achieve their dreams. A child who is aggressive, outspoken and argumentative should be encouraged to study law after secondary school education with full support of the parents. When both parents are focused on the abilities of the child and not their own selfish interests, the child will be bold and submissive to their lead and will forever be grateful and cherish them. Irrespective of the child’s dreams, parents should convince their wards to attain primary and secondary education and also give room for the child to study along the gift deposited. By achieving this, higher institutions will stop being flooded with medical, law and engineering students alone. Parents should be deeply involved in their affairs at school, that must know the kind of friends their kids associate with, they must monitor all academic activities such as notes, assignments and so on. Time management is very important in the life of a child; the parents must be available to help the manage his or her time. From waking early, through to morning devotion, house chores and getting to school early. And parents must also allow their kids ample time to play and exercise their bodies in order to stay healthy and also have a functional mind.

In the quest for the development of the nation, the government also has a role to play, and one major problem that needs to be tackled is unemployment. Graduates are produced annually and the employment opportunities are being narrowed by the day. Loads of medical doctors are at the bank due to the fact that the facilities needed for the efficiency of the graduating doctors is limited. Gone are the days when a graduate in mass communication would have a queue of jobs already waiting but these days, graduates have to queue for jobs by spending years looking for employment after the perils and strive in getting education. Youths should be encouraged to occupy prominent positions and display their skills rather than allowing the 35year servitude of the elderly ones. For instance, in the civil service and average graduate will serve for 35years, and countless graduates who are worthy of filling the gap would have been produced but can’t feel the position because an “old cargo” is yet to end his 35year service. More employment opportunities haven’t been created to match up the number of graduates generated annually. Sporting in Nigeria has been nothing to write home about. I see empty rows of seats in our stadiums while a major league is going on other major football leagues in the world even have greater audience in Nigeria than her own major league. English side stadiums overflow like rivers of waters due to the development and advanced technology make up of their stadiums which meet up with the entertainment desires of the people. The government needs to invest in our stadiums here and thereby generated funds as our people can now patronize Nigerian football. Fresh political science graduates should be allowed to rule the nation after being tested and trusted with leadership skills.  

Governmental and non -  governmental institutions can reduce the number of hours married persons should work by operating on shifts, rather than a person working for 9hrs at a stretch. A married person can handle the morning shift so that he can cater for his family before work and still have the time for his family on returning home. This will give room for effective monitoring the affairs of the children and also enhance their development. The combined effort of the government, parents and religious bodies who need to counsel parents and the children in the ways of the Lord; the talents of the “leaders of today” would be fully maximized and the nation would be wealthy. TALENT is divine, TALENT is from God, EDUCATION is man’s making, God is superior to man, Talent is superior to Education.