Grammar and Education: The Nigerian Reality. Ganiu Bamgbose, PhD.

Grammar and Education: The Nigerian Reality.
Ganiu Bamgbose, PhD.

James Elliot, in his book entitled “Let’s Discuss Education,” submitted that school in Nigeria is where children go when their parents go to work. This, amongst other things, reminds one of the low quality of teaching and learning in many Nigerian schools. As doubtful as it may sound, you might be tempted to believe James Elliot’s submission with the multitude of teachers who want students to wait behind for “extra moral lessons,” instead of “extramural lessons.” Moreover, many a teacher cannot discretely distinguish between “timetable” and “times table.” Along these lines, it is not unusual to notice them confuse one with the other. For specifics, while the separated compound word, “times table,” actually means a list that shows the results of multiplying certain numbers (such as 1 through 12) by each other; the single word, “timetable,” portrays a detailed plan bordering on events or activities that will happen. Further to this, grammatical abberations such as “Why did you off your shoes?” “Charles, off the light” and “I instructed him to on the computer,” will make you wonder what system produced those in whose hands the future leaders of Nigeria are entrusted. Why should a teacher be oblivious of the fact that “off” and “on” are prepositions and cannot be enlisted as verbs? For correctness’ sake, therefore, the sentences should be rendered as: “Why did you take off your shoes?” “Charles, turn off the light” and “I instructed him to switch on the computer.” The inference is that the phrasal verbs “turn on/off,” “switch on/off” and “take off” should be enlisted as and when appropriate.

Since corporal punishment is still allowed in Nigeria, it is common to have teachers flog students for not buying what they call “stationeries.” And you wonder if they, too, should not be subjected to punitive measures for being ignorant of the fact that writing materials are collectively called “stationery”. Bewilderingly, also, the erroneous cliche one often hears from school administrators, who appreciate the parents on behalf of the “entire staffs” (rather than the “entire staff”), could instigate one to inquire if anything else is needed to start up a school in Nigeria, aside from money. In this regard, it is equally imperative to note that every teacher is called a “member of staff or staffer;” not a “staff.” Even some public school principals could organise a “send-off (a noun)” for their staff and confidently declare it as a “send forth.” Actually, “send forth” is a phrasal verb which means to cause something to be heard, or to cause light, heat, etc. to move outward from a source.

Noticeably, some of these educational custodians promise parents/guardians to handle their children/wards “from the scratch.” In point of fact, to begin a process, especially without making use of, or relying on any previous work for assistance, is to begin “from scratch.” Of course, others are quick to tell you that teaching is not “a child’s play;” not minding that the expression “child’s play” should not attract the article “a”. What is more, “time up” is what you hear some teachers scream confidently, instead of “time’s up” — an expression used to indicate that the allowed period of time has ended. Again, the vast majority of teachers have registered “shed more light” in their memories, so much so that it is difficult to tell them that “more” should be expunged from the expression. Therefore, we “shed light” on lessons; not “shed more light.”

With regard to the other divide, should we spare parents/guardians who, in their supposed feeling of superiority to their offspring/wards’ teachers, refer to such teachers as “mediocres,” while reporting their perceived inadequacies to school owners? They, too, should be told that people can be “mediocre (an adjective)” or “mediocrities (a noun);” not “mediocres.” This is owing to the fact that adjectives are not supposed to be pluralised. As a sequel to the foregoing, it is necessary to enlighten them that those who are paid to sit their children’s or wards’ examinations, thereby compromising the system, are not “machineries.” At best, they can be called “mercenaries,” given that the latter means people who do anything for its monetary value. In view of this, I won’t forget to mention that “machinery” (an uncountable noun) is only used to refer to machines and established structures in organisations/institutions — not humans. By reason of this fact, “machineries” is outright nonexistent in the English lexicon.

How should I round off? Dear teachers, it may also interest you to know that it is safe to end your lesson with the expression “in conclusion” (which is synonymous with “finally,” “lastly” or “to sum up”), as opposed to “conclusively,” which implies that something is done in a decisive or convincing manner.

(c) 2020 Ganiu Abisoye Bamgbose (Dr GAB)