Wow… imagine if higher education was to be free for all and sundry, it would really be great! All you would have to do is to maybe pass the test, and get in on your merit, then the next couple of years would be taken care of by the government.
It is actually a sweet thought when you think about it. Because I for one know firsthand the struggles many of us students go through on a daily basis on account of fees. People have failed exams because they could not pay their fees on time, and many more have gone into depression because they have no idea where the fees are even going to come from. And with schools pushing up their tuition with every passing year, how can one ever catch up?
I can testify to the beauty of having free education. The whole of my secondary education was in a government school, and things like fees were taken care of by the government. Even some textbooks were provided for us by the government. As students, all we had to do was get our uniforms, buy our own notebooks, and follow the laid down rules as well.
It was smooth sailing, I have to say. Not having to worry about pesky things like school fees and whatnot. The only time we had to pay for something was when we were contributing to one project or the other. And as at that time, it never got as high as five hundred naira. I will always be grateful to the Lagos State government for that because that school played a major role in making me who I am today.
As you can see, I have been listing some of the qualities of free education. What if I tell you there are also demerits? These demerits can be overlooked for basic and secondary education because every child has a right to it. But for higher education, it will cause a huge problem.
Over Population!
This is going to be one of the first issues the school will have to contend with. Whether we like it or not, the reason many people are not in school today is because of money. Sometimes, they would start but drop out midway because the funds dried up. Some would sit for the entrance exams and would gain admission, but to pay acceptance fees and school fees would be a tug-of-war.
There are so many little reasons that surround the major reason, which is money! Once that problem is eradicated, everyone will flock to school in their numbers. And I don’t think the school will be equipped to handle such a large amount of students at the same time.
One major issue with learning in a crowded environment is that you will never learn. There will always be noise, and people screaming, and even if the lecturers are using speakers to lecture, they still won’t be heard. The crowd would be uncontrollable and in such an environment, it is quite easy to fall sick or for airborne diseases to spread.
Lack Of Seriousness!
If there is one thing I have noticed about humans, we enjoy free things a lot, but we never value them. Anything that comes easy, many people would never take it seriously. Unless you use your hard-earned money to purchase that thing, it can go to waste for all you care.
This will be the case in universities. Many students will not be serious with their lectures. They will be easily distracted. And the only way to combat this would be to have measures in place that will ensure consequences if students fail to reach a certain grade.
Although, I must say that even now that we are paying fees, there are still people who are unserious about their education. So, maybe this is not just tied to the money, but to the individual as well.
Standard Of Teaching!
This will be affected as well. As I said earlier, there will be an influx of students which means more people for each lecturer to handle. This will affect their teaching and make it harder to impact knowledge.
And then, there will not be much choice. Most of the schools will be run by the government, meaning there will be no private schools. So, no matter how rich your father is, you’ll also go to a public school with everyone.
And if this change comes with a raise in the salaries of the lecturers, then they might put more effort into making it work. If not, they might get lax.
So, Do I Think Higher Education Should Be Free?
If I’m being honest, I don’t think it should be free. The difference in the fees is part of the reasons people go out of their cities and states to attend other universities. The fees give us choices, and we go for the one we think is the best.
It will also control the population. When you have the money, you’ll come to school. One thing people fail to notice is that in this day and age, there is no limit to when you can go to school. There is no one pressing your neck and telling you that you must gain admission by eighteen years and finish by twenty-five.
Life is now easier than all that. You take your time and do this at your own pace, because the moment you get into the school, you’ll see the stress that will make you wish you never got admitted in the first place. So take your time, what is the point in rushing to meet your shege when you know it will get to you eventually?
In Conclusion!
While I prefer school to not be free, I sure as hell wish it was not so expensive. As in, it’s a government school, why then do they keep on adding money each week? And what is the point of the acceptance fee? If I was not going to accept your admission, would I have applied for it in the first place?
As far as I am concerned, all these are means to get more money from the students. Because if they keep taking this money from us, why then do lecturers keep on going on strike? If government basically runs the school and pays the staff, why do our fees keep increasing? This is something that has always baffled me, but I have never really tried to get an answer.
With regard to education, I sure hope that things get better. I hope the exorbitant fees will come down and the pressure on students to pay up will reduce because it keeps on getting “wesser”. And in time, it will spread to other areas of the economy as well.