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Yoruba Education

Traditional Education

Through the traditional education institution, the Yoruba pass on the cherished values of the nation to its young. Education here, is not conceived as an isolated institution; it is pervasive and embedded in the other cultural institutions. The cultural milieu of the child is the proper locus for his/her education. Traditional education emphasizes good conduct and character; it is the training of a complete human person, referred to as omoluabi. This is the epitome of character (iwa). Iwa is the highest moral quality expected of any human person. For it is its possession that ensures good moral conduct. The Yoruba people do not appreciate wealth which is not accompanied by character. A child is trained to respect elders, to be honest, to be hardworking, generous, courageous and helpful to the needy. Hard work is especially emphasized, and many children learn the classic Yoruba rhyme on hard work from the cradle:

In traditional education, the community itself is the teacher and the school., and education is a life-time process, starting even with the fetus up until death. In pregnancy, the mother to be has guidelines about what to do, eat and drink for the sake of the child. Moreover, the divination system provides for a foreknowledge of the destiny of the fetus so as to prepare adequately for its birth and upbringing.
At birth, the new baby is showered with love and affection by the entire extended family and community. As explained under naming ceremonies, the baby is given names according to the tradition of her/his household. As the baby grows, she is reminded of the meaning of her name, and then given instructions on how to live according to its meaning. The mother has this responsibility, and she performs it with pride. She recites the praise names of the child's family and the self-esteem of the child is thus enhanced from birth.

As the child grows, informal training in numbering and language begins to take shape. At this point, the responsibility lies with grown-ups in the compound. He goes out to the play ground with them, and he goes to the farm with them. They tell him trickster tales, and teach him how to play the ayo game. Through the examples of elders, the child learns the virtues of endurance, courage, and through proverbs he learns the use of language and the art of living. The child is soon ready to learn a trade or craft. It may be a craft that is unique to the family (sculpture) or one that he has to go out and learn (tailoring). The parents are responsible for guiding the child and sending him/her to an apprentice, and for getting him or her started in the new trade after graduation. In short, the focus of traditional Yoruba education is making the child a whole person and an integral members of the community.

Western Education

Western education came into Yorubaland in the early 19th century through the effort of Christian missionaries. Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther , first African bishop was the first Yoruba to receive higher education. He accompanied other C.M.S missionaries, including Revd. Townsend, to Badagry in January 1845 to start Christian evangelization of the Niger delta. But the credit for the first school in Nigeria goes to the Methodist Mission which in 1843 established the "Nursery of the Infant Church' in Badagry under the direction of Mr. And Mrs. De Graft. Subsequent to this first initiative, the C.M.S. became more aggressively involved in establishing schools. Of course, the main goal of Christian missionaries in these efforts was to evangelize and convert, and to train a number of lay men who can read the Bible and serve as their assistants. No doubt, however, the efforts benefited the Yoruba, who took advantage of the missionary education to send their children to school.

As can be seen from the following table, the head start the Yoruba had in missionary initiative in education resulted in a boom in secondary education between 1859 and 1914:

Source: A. Babs Fafunwa, A History of Education in Nigeria London: George Allen & Unwin 1974 p..99

Development and Modernization in Yoruba Society

History was made in 1952 when Chief Obafemi Awolow led the Action group to election victory in the Western Region. The party had made its campaign theme "freedom for all, life more abundant". It pledged to promote education and health for all the citizens of the region. True to its promise, Chief Awolowo announced during his first budget speech in the new Western House of Assembly that his government was going to give priority to education and health within the limits of its budget. In July 1952, the then Minister of education, Chief S.O. Awokoya presented a comprehensive proposal for universal free primary education for the region with effect from January 1955. Teacher training was given top priority in the proposal as well as the expansion of secondary school facilities to prepare for the products of the new primary schools. In his speech, Chief Awokoya declared: "Educational development is imperative and urgent. It must be treated as a national emergency, second only to war. It must move with the momentum of a revolution." (Western Region Debates 30 July 1952 pp.463-70 cited in Fafunwa, History of Education in Nigeria, p.168).

This initiative was pursued with vigor. The government embarked on an elaborate campaign to win the hearts of the people to the idea of universal primary education. And it worked. Enrollment in primary schools in the region jumped from 457,00 pupils in 1954 to 811,000 in 1955. By 1958, more than one million children were enrolled in primary schools in the region. This also had a positive effect on secondary school and teacher training expansion. In addition, trade schools and technical colleges were introduced throughout the region, and the region became a model for other regions in Nigeria. This initial effort of the Action Group-led government in Western Region is responsible for the educational advancement of theYoruba. And this is why they consider it an outrage when Dr. Jubril Aminu of the Nigerian Universities Commission started a campaign to slow down educational achievements of the Southern parts of the country for the North to catch up, as this achievement was not earned at the expense of any part of the country. It was achieved through foresight and sacrifice. As Fafunwa puts it, with the Universal Primary Education in Western region in 1995, "the boldest and perhaps the most unprecedented scheme in Africa south of the Sahara was launched by an indigenous government as a meaningful demonstration of its commitment to the vital interests of the people it governed." (p.168) This revolution continued with the establishment of the University of Ife in 1962.

Military Era

The military has ruled Nigeria for 27 out of 37 years of its independence from Britain on October 1, 1960. The first republic lasted from 1960 to January 1966, the second republic started on October 1, 1979, after 13 years of military occupation, and ended on Decmber 31, 1984 with another military take-over. And since then, it has been military dictatorship on the loose.

The military regimes did an almost irreparable damage to the educational system of the country in general, but to the south, especially the Yoruba nation in particular. From the foregoing account, the Yoruba had a head start based on the priority that their leaders gave education. The military "unitarized" the country, thus making it impossible for Western Region to sustain its educational programs for its people. The policy of uniformity embarked upon by the military regimes was focused more on helping the North to catch up with the South in all fields. Universities, including the University of Ife, were taken over by the federal military government, and policies were dictated from the center. The most frustrating of these policies was the discriminatory policies of admission to the universities. Under this policy, different pass marks are set for southerners than norherners. The former have to score higher in the Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination than the latter. The result is that many southerners, especially Yoruba find it impossible to get university admission even after they have satisfied all the requirements. If this were a response to past discriminatory policies of admission which favored southerners and harmed northerners, it would make sense as compensation. But no one, not even Jubril Aminu, the architect of the obnoxious policy, has accused southerners of discrimination.

Beside the policy of quota admission, there is also the total neglect of the budgetary needs of higher educational institutions during the military eras. Universities deteriorated in every aspect of their functions. It was during this period that the catering facilities were eliminated from the institutions. The result is that it became too difficult for students to concentrate on their studies. They have to think of where they next meal will come from, and many resorted to skipping meals, with serious consequences on their health and academic progress. Classroom space became problematic and laboratory facilities fell into states of disrepair. In short, the universities became ghosts of their former selves. The military shows its lack of interest in higher education by just killing the institutions slowly but systematically. For the Yoruba who love education and would give up other good to give their children the best education, it has been a frustrating experience.

Pioneers of Western Education

Bishop Ajayi Crowther

Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther was the first Nigerian to receive higher education. Born around 1809 in Osogun, a Yoruba village near Iseyin in Western Nigeria, Ajayi was captured and sold into slavery as a child. He was one of those freed and later repatriated to Freetown in 1822. He was educated in Sierra Leone and Britain by the Anglican Church Missionary Society. He attended the Fourah Bay college in Sierra Leone as its first student shortly after it was founded in 1827. Ajayi was ordained a priest in 1844, and years later, he became the first Bishop of West Africa. He translated the English Bible into Yoruba, and founded the Anglican mission in Abeokuta. Bishop Crowther died in 1891.

Rev Ransome Kuti

Herbert Macaulay etc