Higher Education's Pitfalls

Its 5:30 in the morning, the sun is not quite out yet but little Joab Onyando is already up and about getting ready for school. He is finally starting first grade—at the age of 10. He skips happily out the door of his house, a shack on a hill outside of Nairobi, Kenya, in a large camp called Kibera. There are about one million people living in the square mile that composes Joab’s camp. Joab’s bubbling excitement is apparent in the newfound sprint in his walk and the enormous smile on his tiny face. He is oblivious to the many potholes that scar the dirt roads of his run-down town as he expertly navigates himself to school. All he can think about is that now his dream will become a reality, he will become a pilot and go all over the world.

Wide Angle first met Joab in 2003. Kenya’s new government had just abolished primary school fees after 40 years. Kenya was now offering every child in the country a free primary education. More than 1.2 million children who had not been in school poured into Kenya’s empty classrooms. Joab was one of those 1.2 million children that finally had the opportunity to visit the inside of a classroom—even if it meant being part of a group of 74 students and solely one teacher, as was Joab’s case. But even under those conditions there still seemed to be hope for Joab’s future.

Several months later Wide Angle revisited Joab and his family. The Wide Angle team was shocked to discover that Joab’s mother had become ill and died prematurely at the age of 28. The pressures of being motherless fell too heavily on the ten year-olds shoulders. He finally gave in and dropped out of school three months after his mother’s death. To make matters worse Joab’s father remarried and moved in with his new wife leaving Joab and his siblings to fend for themselves. Now virtually an orphan, Joab was relegated to roam the streets—that is, until his teachers came looking for him. Joab is one more boy his teachers have had to rescue from the streets and brought back to school.

The Wide Angle team returned a year later to visit Joab and was happy to find that he was still in school. Although Joab’s future may seem secure for now, what will happen if and when Joab finishes primary school? Motherless and fatherless there is no one left to sponsor his education past primary school. Like many of Africa’s children their education is stumped prematurely. Statistics show that less than half of African children reach secondary school after completing primary school. Almost none, 6% of males and 4% of females, have the opportunity to reach tertiary education. So what is causing this trend, what can cause school enrollment to drop so drastically from 99% gross at the primary level to a meager 6% gross at the tertiary level? Joab’s story gave us an inside view of what is causing this vicious cycle. Many African countries such as Kenya now provide free-primary education but not any further. If a parent wants their child to continue their education they have to find the means to pay school fees. Parents are forced to choose between feeding and educating their children. The question now is: if African children are no longer in school where are they?

Many children, such as Joab, who find themselves without parental support, virtually orphaned, are forced to support themselves by living on the streets. Joab was lucky enough to have been saved once by his teachers but, the majority of children are not so lucky. Even children that have one or both of their parents are often forced to leave school to work and provide extra income for their families. By the time they are 18 and 19 years of age African children have long ago abandoned school and have been exposed to the workforce for several years. Worse yet, the same children that once abandoned school to help support their families are facing a new reality when they grow up and become young adults. The odd jobs they were able to scrape up as kids, to provide some small amount of support for their parents, is not sufficient income to become independent and form a family of their own. The only jobs that are available to them are non-specialized low paying jobs. The situation would not be so terrible if there were enough jobs for these African youth—they would at least have some source of income.

Statistics show that young adults make up 36.9% of the working age population in Africa, but 59.5% of the total unemployed. Without proper education most young adults are employed in agriculture, 65%. In rural Ethiopia most young adults work an average of 43 hours a week in agriculture. Without hope of learning another specialized skill most youth live their entire lives in the same location with the same job (Youth and Employment in Africa). However African youth are not a homogenous group. An interesting fact the World Bank discovered was that youth unemployment was more prevalent in urban areas, those with higher education attainment, and those in wealthy households. The reason for this is very simple. Young adults that have more opportunities and options in life will wait longer to prepare themselves before entering the workforce (Youth and Employment in Africa). Higher education is key for the success of African youth. Without higher education there is no way possible that they will be able to compete at the global level.

Presently,Sub-Saharan Africa has the lowest tertiary enrollment ratio in the world. The terribly slow enrollment rate growth in Sub-Saharan Africa has caused a major education gap causing it to lag far behind other regions of the world. For example, Sub-Saharan Africa’s current tertiary enrollment ratio is in the same range as that of other developing regions 40 years ago. The major problem in Africa’s educational system is the African governments’ neglect of higher education. One factor that has contributed to the deteriorated state of this system is the relationship between higher education and law in many African countries. In Madagascar, the Ministry of Education appoints all faculty members, sets salaries, and determines working conditions. This forces the faculty of each institution to be closely linked to the political system. Rather than making teaching and research their number one priority they have to focus on “running” for election to win or maintain a seat as a faculty member. Teaching credentials are often ignored in favor of personal connections. A similar case occurs in Benin and Tanzania, where the government appoints all senior University officials. Yet another prime example is Cameroon where the Ministry of Education holds supervisory authority over Universities. The other extreme is also true in many African countries. Scarce or total lack of governmental regulation causes the quality of higher education to suffer. In Angola, universities have full autonomy in decision-making. A similar scenario has occurred in Guinea and Liberia. The total lack of regulation has often resulted in the sprouting of numerous high cost but low-quality “diploma mills”.

The blame for the present state of the African higher educational systems cannot be solely placed on the African governments. For many decades the international development community has encouraged the neglect of higher education by donating money solely to the development of primary education programs. Likewise, for a long time the World Bank believed that primary and secondary education were more important than tertiary education for the reduction of poverty. The World Bank exercises significant influence over developing countries and are therefore definitely to blame for the deteriorated state of tertiary education throughout the African continent. The World Bank’s posture was based on multiple studies that appeared to show that the returns to investing in primary and secondary education were higher than those of higher education. As proof to this outdated belief: from 1985 to 1989, 17% of the World Bank’s educational spending was onhigher education but, from 1995 to 1999 this percentage declined to just 7%. The focus at the time, it seemed, was only on primary basic education. The actions of the international community, the World Bank, and the African governments combined placed Africa on a direct path towards failure. But, there still may be hope for Africa’s youth. More than a decade later the World Bank has done a 360 degree turn in regards to higher education— realizing the terrible mistake it made by neglecting tertiary education.

Thousands of miles away from the African continent, in Canada, the 100 representatives of 17 nations in attendance at an international education advisory panel all agreed on one thing: In 2012 higher education is no longer a commodity for governments. Higher education has become a necessity for economic growth. Higher education has become so important that governments are willing to give away millions of dollars to have their youth receive the best education possible. Brazil is providing more than 75,000 scholarships for students to study overseas in the next four years. Likewise, China and Qatar are recruiting branch campuses from the United States and other western countries. There are definitely economic motivations in supporting higher education. In 2010 alone the United States earned more than $20 billion from international students. Internationalization of education is being viewed as the answer to the current education deficiencies in many nations around the globe. It’s becoming highly popular for developing countries to send their students overseas to countries such as the US and Europe.

In an elite high school in the Sichuan Province of China more than 800 students were competing for spots in Beijing’s top two universities in 2008. The year before only 59 students made the cut. Competition is fierce because the greater majority, those who don’t make it, are relegated to vocational schools. For many poor Chinese students without connections the only way to succeed and climb the social ladder is to show a strong performance on the national university entrance exam. The students that don’t make the Chinese cut have two options, vocational school or study abroad. The option in most cases is study overseas in the United States or Europe.

American and European universities are becoming flooded with foreign applicants limiting the number of seats available to their native students. “We’re in something akin to the gold rush, a frontier-style environment where colleges and universities,like prospectors in the 1800s, realize that there is gold out there” said David Hawkins, the director of public policy at the National Association for College Admission Counseling. For example, in the past three years Washington State has decreased admission offers to Washington residents, and increased them to students overseas. The primary reason is that Washington State is able to charge foreign students much more than a resident, often three times as much. This situation raises the question whether it is fair to American and European students to make admissions to their home universities even more competitive? Should countries fix their own educational systems first before sending their students overseas?

Fellow classmate, Vinny, believes that there are enough intelligent minds in the United States and there is no need to search overseas. As a college undergraduate soon to be applying to a professional program he thinks it only puts more pressure on American students. Sam, another classmate and prospective graduate student, feels that this new influx of foreign minds is making US programs even more competitive than they already are. Although she does see value and importance for students to be studying overseas—new ideas, techniques, and advances can be spread more rapidly that way. Jackie, an additional classmate, agrees with Sam on the importance of traveling abroad. She believes that traveling gives a depth to an individual’s experiences and opinions that cannot be learned otherwise.

As an American college student myself I agree with my classmates’ opinions and have the same concerns. There is definitely value in studying abroad. But in general, for an American student, studying abroad means being enrolled in an American institution and going abroad for a couple of semesters. American students are not taking away seats from foreign students when they travel abroad. Furthermore, by enrolling students from other countries into American institutions their own educational systems are not being improved. The growing trend of accepting such large numbers of foreign students into American universities will only succeed in creating a dependence on American education.    

Is the internationalization of education the correct answer for tertiary educational systems in developing countries such as those found in Africa? Internationalization in the way that it’s occurring now is not the answer to this problem. For instance, it is each country’s government that decides which students receive scholarships to study oversees. Governments cannot be fully trusted to hand out scholarships in an unbiased and equal manner. A child like Joab, an orphan with no connections, would not be a likely candidate to receive such a scholarship. What good is it to a country to ship out a select number of students overseas while leaving behind the greater majority in the same situation? The country will be left once again with a few prominent specialized individuals and a large population that is uneducated.

Africa and other regions of the world with developing countries can overcome poverty through higher education. Higher education will give them the power to compete at the international level. The first step is to direct more funds from the international development community to higher education. The key here is to ensure that the money is being used for tertiary education and by qualified institutions. This is where the World Bank comes in. As stated earlier the World Bank has significant influence over developing countries. Therefore, the World Bank should set up an incentive program where the amount of money a government receives is based on the quality of educational institutions, graduation rates, enrollment ratios including gender and poverty reduction statistics over a certain period of time. These steps would ensure developing countries have high-quality tertiary institutions that measure up to the international level.

Each government can then decide whether to provide free college education as is the case in Denmark, Greece, Argentina, Sweden and other countries around the globe. If they decide not to then they must set up a government support program to ensure that poverty does not impede a deserving student from obtaining a college education. For example, the US has the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which provides grants based on income, as well as many other loan and grant programs.  

The second step includes increasing the enrollment ratios at the primary and secondary level. For this to become a reality free public education is a must. In order to increase and maintain enrollment ratios, incentive programs should be used by governments. A prime example of such a program is Brazil’s Bolsa Familia. Under this program poor families receive financial assistance preferably paid to the woman. In order to receive this continued financial assistance families must have any children between the ages of 6-17 enrolled in school. In addition there is a minimum attendance policy as part of the conditions. A program such as this would ensure children remain in school and are not forced into the workforce prematurely.

The final step is the internationalization of education. Instead of shipping students overseas the government should encourage enrollment in home institutions with opportunities to study abroad. There should definitely be a strong relationship with the international community. Students will have the final decision whether to enroll in a home or foreign institution. But, if they are able to find what they are looking for at home they will be less likely to enroll overseas.

The plan proposed above is simply a rough basic outline of what needs to be addressed in many developing countries. Actually putting such a plan into action would definitely be more complicated.  In general a person needs an education and a chance to have a better life.  A country needs an educated specialized society that can provide suitable leaders that have the skills to build and then maintain a healthy economy. The world needs more self-sustained countries that are not dependent on the wealthier nations for constant support. Therefore, this plan of action aims to address the needs of the normal individual, such as Joab. At the same time it addresses the needs of a country, such as Kenya or any similar developing country. Finally it addresses the needs of the international community. A plan action, such as this one, would benefit every poor and wealthy nation alike. In order to reduce poverty through higher education the international community that now holds the most power and influence, such as the US and Europe, have to take the first initiative. This is because they are, after all, step one of the plan, they are the international development community.