In the past, courses outlined in Universities were thoroughly taught to make sure the students understood them well. I often hear remarks from my lecturers, about how they had enough time to learn and also carry out practicals during study. Course outlines were delivered by the lecturers at a slower pace to ensure that their students mastered the topics and related aspects of the course.
The semesters weren't as short, allowing enough time for students to prepare for their exams. Nowadays, tertiary institutions are like a marathon. Imagine in a semester of just two months, you are taking 11 courses. Is it assumed that we are wizards to master what we are taught in such a short time?
It's appalling how the practical aspect of courses has been neglected just to rush through a section, all in the name of catching up to schedule. The worst part is having a strict exam schedule with exams back to back or two papers in a day. Since we are expected to know everything due to having computer brains. It wasn't a funny experience, I got lost along the way but thank God I graduated with good grades.
At primary and secondary levels of education, I am perplexed about how students, especially government students, go to school very late. I usually see them walk to school at 10 am. Back then, at 9 am, you wouldn't see students walking on the street because classes had already started. When I see them strolling to the school, I wonder if the assembly time has been shifted from 7;30am to 9 am.
One bad thing in the past
In the past, there was little access to information unlike now in the digital world one can access resources online. It was difficult to carry out research quickly as one had to continuously visit the library for books and journals, and not many people had access to the Internet then.
Nowadays people hardly visit the library in search of books since they can access diverse information related to their course of study with just a click of their phone. The internet has been both a blessing and a curse to students.
There's a lecturer of mine who often rants about students and asks why are we not reading. He states that it's much easier now with a smartphone, but students aren't making use of it for educational purposes; instead, they are using it for other distractions.
The innovations are cool, but we students often overuse them to the detriment of our critical thinking. The reliance on technology like chat GPT is quite high among students, lecturers, and various professionals. I feel it has limited and suppressed that zeal to learn and explore information independently.
Possible solutions
The educational system should be reorganized to find a balance between fast and slow pacing with more emphasis on practicals. Discipline and rules should also be enforced in primary and secondary levels of education to instill punctuality and a sense of responsibility. We shouldn't rely too much on the internet, instead; occasionally we should browse through our old textbooks and library books it can help reinforce learning and retention.
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