Care NGO Nigeria
It is Never Too Late to Learn.
Tuesday, 08 June 2010 17:28 | 
Written by adminsitrator | 
In this paper he presented during the matriculation ceremony of the National Teachers’ Institute, NCE/DLS, GSS Sabon-Tasha Study Centre, Kaduna, which held on May15, 2010, the Dean, Faculty of Science, Kaduna State University and the Coordinator of CaRE-NGO,Kaduna, Prof. Bala Dogo ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ; 08035930309) emphasizes that it is Never Too Late to Learn.
Greetings/Protocol.
I count it a privilege to speak to you on this memorable day of matriculation. I have one major reason of presenting this speech- to motivate all of you and to spur you into action- THAT IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO LEARN. So I want to thank God for this opportunity, and to express my gratitude to the Centre Manager and your Student Union Government President for extending this invitation to me. I am not new to working with adults who are working very hard to study. I am involved in providing functional education, and a good number of the students are women. So I am aware of the difficulties involved. So let me commend you for this great start. A journey of one thousand miles begins with one step. You are in the right place; you are on the right path.
In order to do this I have decided to use three methods to convey my message: coining a phrase from the word MATRICULATE, using folklore as an illustration and the citing of a few quotations thus:
M-motivating
A-all and sundry, and, particularly adults
T-to
R-read and to
I-inspire them to be
C-courageous and
U-utilise the remaining period of their lives to
L-learn
A-and become
T-trained teachers for
E –education is the only thing one can always fall back on in this life.
You must have observed that no one has put it better than the motto of your citadel of learning that: It is never too late to learn. I totally agree with this. In fact, one of my lecturers, Prof. A.A. Adepetu taught me that he considers any date wasted if he did not learn any new thing that day. To him late learning entails many serious challenges and there are many obstacles to cross. To be successful in life there is the need to cross these obstacles.
Whatever be the case, a saying has it that it is better to be late than never. There is this folklore about the slow tortoise and the fast rabbit. They were invited to attend a very important occasion. The tortoise went very slowly but the rabbit boasted of his ability to run very fast. He went very close to the venue then decided to take a nap on one of the trees on the road. He slept off only to wake up when the occasion was over. There is this saying that you should speed slowly. The same thing applies to the manner of growth between a pawpaw and that of an orange. It is obvious that the orange tree is stronger than that of pawpaw. So there is no harm in one going ‘jejely’ in education.
Let me also remind you of the many popular sayings:
· If there is life, there is hope
· Quitters never win and winners never quit
· Never allow anybody to judge you based on your past that you will not amount to anything because you have a future to live
· Never say it is over until it is over
· Work is only given to busy people; and you can never be too busy that you can not scratch where it is itching you
· There is hope for the person who wants to learn
· Only a fool knows everything
· Only you can stop yourself from reaching greatness
· Do not use your past to judge your future
More specifically, it was King Whiteney Jr who asserted that change, ‘to the fearful is threatening because it means that things may get worse. To the hopeful it is encouraging because things may get better. To the confident it is inspiring because the challenge exists to make things better’. Let me prophesy to you that because you have come to learn you will never remain the same. But you must have the courage to complete your studies. There must be palpable changes in your homes, in the way you keep records, train your children and perspective of looking at life generally. You must be determined to complete your studies no matter what for as somebody said: no way will give you chance unless you give yourself chance.
It was Mother Theresa who said: Be faithful in little things because it is in them that your strength lies. A Chinese proverb has it that be not afraid of doing slowly but only afraid of standing still; that a failure in life is one who lives and fails to learn. Years make all of us old; and few of us wise.
It was Sholom Aleishem who said ‘Life is a dream for the wise, a game for the fool, a comedy for the rich, a tragedy for the poor.
Life consists not in holding good cards but in playing those you hold well- Josh Billings
I’ve failed over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed- Michael Jordan
An education isn’t how much you have committed to memory, or even how much you know. It’s being able to differentiate between what you know and what you don’t.- Anatole France
A man who won’t die for something is not fit to live- Martin Luther King, Jr.
Men/women who know themselves are no longer fools. They stand on the threshold of the door of wisdom- Henry Ellis.
Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced- James Baldwin
In youth, we run into difficulties. In old age, difficulties run into us- Beverly Sills.
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams- Eleanor Roosevelt.
I thank you for listening.
Last Updated (Friday, 11 June 2010 11:18)
How to Excel as a Student- book reviewTuesday, 08 June 2010 17:23 | Written by administrator |
How to Excel as a Student… A Self Improvement book for Students Desiring to Succeed Academically, by Lergo Musa, Light of Life Publications, Kaduna, 2010, 143pp, NO PRICE GIVEN, Paperback, ISBN 978-7110-4-08. The reviewing of this book reminds me of a funny story of a boy in those days when Inspectors were deployed to visit schools and examine students on practical teaching. The ‘teacher’ was so timid about the exercise that he decided to ‘drill’ a particular boy on how to answer a question on the topic which was on God’s love. When the‘d day’ came the boy that was slated and/or drilled to answer the prepared question became so afraid that he went to hide himself in the toilet. When the teacher asked the question, and was looking around for this student, the Inspector was then told that the boy that God loves was in the toilet. The very day that Pharm. Musa and his wife came and requested me to review this book; I asked him several questions about why he wrote the book, its focus, strength and weaknesses. However, I lost the paper when it was time for me to use it in writing my report. So I was left with residual knowledge after I have read the book. I have nonetheless, made some comments in the copy of the book; I intend to give him my own copy so that he can use it when it is time to revise it. In effect, some of the comments are meant for the consumption of the author. Again, these are personal opinions. The book ‘How to Excel as a Student… A Self improvement book for students desiring to succeed academically’ by Pharmacist Lergo Musa in 2010, was published by Light of Life Publications, Kaduna. It is made up of 20 Chapters. Some of the topics ranged from introduction- here the author enjoins the student to –work smart, not hard to specific issues : welcome to college, goal setting, time management, organizing your task, maximizing your time, organizing your stuff, stop procrastination, stress management, paying the bills, money management, social life on campus, time management for non-traditional students, your health and your academics, dealing with difficult lecturers and courses, effective note taking, effective studying, effective learning, improving your memory, examination made easy, ICT and the student. The author urges the Students to set SMART goals i.e Specific, Measureable, Attainable, Realistic and Time bound goals and not to build castle in the air. Four references were cited at the end of the book. The book does not have any foreword. A French Proverb has it that: only he who does nothing makes no mistake. Some of the typo, syntax and grammatical errors have been pointed out in the book. It is obvious that the author read very widely, but this is not reflected in the referencing. For example, the: survey, question, read, recite and review (SQ3R) technique, has existed since the 70s. But there is an impression in the book as if it is a new technique since no reference is accredited or alluded to. The book apparently seems to favour the male gender. Deliberate efforts must be made to make it gender neutral in the revised version. Using words like s/he will go a long way in making the book gender-friendly. The dangers of examination mal-practice, HIV/AIDS, cultism, drugs, etc are supposed to have attracted more attention in a book of this nature. Somebody told me last week that a book of this nature should address what he terms the three Ds- diligence, determination and dedication. I would also want to add that any student that wants to excel very well must have these Cs- courage, confidence, and computer-literate, calmness, calculative, composure-always-and-not-looking-confused. In order for any student to excel academically, there is the need for him/her to take note of the four (4Fs): Fear-God, focused, fighter of laziness, too much sleep and failure; faithful to your books and attend all lectures. We also have the over ten Rs (10Rs +) for any successful student: Resourcefulness, Result-oriented, Resolute, Resilient like footballers, Ready to repeat if there is need for it, Recreate, relax and rest appropriately; Ready to learn and unlearn, Ready to adjust, Remain focused; Resist all vices, cultism, HIV/AIDS, peer pressure, examination malpractice and be a ‘Reader’ and Respectful; after all somebody told me the other day that PhD could be transliterated as: P-patience; h for humility and D for dobale. We also have what I call the 12 Ps for any student that wants to excel: patience, pragmatic, proactive, participate very actively in the class, problem-solver, pushful and not lackadaisical, patriotic by obeying the rules/regulation of the school and the country, pathfinder of how those in the past made it, practically oriented, partitioner of his/her for academic, social and spiritual events; resources and time; prioritiser of things, pay the price for excellence- a little sleep the holy scriptures leads to… Any student who wants to excel must be told what Benjamin Franklin said: the person that riseth late must trot all day. They should be reminded that a person isn’t educated unless s/he has learned how little s/he already knows; only hungry minds can become educated; a failure in life is one who lives and fails to learn; that the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. A few of such powerful quotes will add further attractions to a book of this nature because you must do something uniquely different, to attract the young people you are writing for, or to. Having said all these, I believe that the author has provided us with something that a student can use to improve and/or excel in his/her academic pursuit. I recommend it to all of our youths in general and particularly those that are about entering any tertiary institution of learning and their teachers/parents too. Prof. Bala Dogo, Faculty of Science, Kaduna State University, Kaduna. *Book Review presented at the Launching/Presentation of the Book, KEPA, 24/4/2010.
Last Updated (Tuesday, 08 June 2010 17:27) Why we are hereSaturday, 07 November 2009 09:28 | Written by Administrator |
Care and Action Research Non-Governmental Organisation (CaRE-NGO) is a grassroot centered organization, working with people at the community level in the areas of functional literacy, community development, reproductive health especially adolescent/youth reproductive health, HIV/AIDS mitigation programmes, computer training for youths-cum-peer education, skills acquisition, rights of children, etc geared towards improving the lot of the less privileged ones on a sustained basis. We use participatory methods to achieve these. Last Updated (Sunday, 08 November 2009 13:19) |
GIS & SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENTTuesday, 08 June 2010 17:17 | Written by administrator |
GIS & SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT BY PROF BALA DOGO FACULTY OF SCIENCE, DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY, KADUNA STATE UNIVERSITY KADUNA This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ; 08035930309
Lead Paper delivered during The Nigerian Environmental Society Conference, Kaduna State Chapter, 3-5 June, 2010, Kaduna State University, Kaduna.
Greetings and Protocols The Geographical Information System (GIS) and Sustainable Development (SD) have become some of the buzz words often employed by government and non-governmental agencies in these days. At the risk of overgeneralization, there is hardly any gathering these days that you will not hear of these words. The other one has to do with climate change. Simply put, a GIS combines layers of information about a place to give you better understanding of that place (http://www.gis.com/whatisgis/index.html). There is a deep awakening too about the future. The reasoning is that it does not make sense for all of us to live today at the expense of future generation through some of our actions and/or inactions. In effect, for development, to make sense, it must not put posterity in a precarious situation. So there is this serious thinking about sustainable development. GIS/Applications According to Areola (1994:22) GIS is currently being employed in solving day-to-day management questions and problems; and it is perhaps, the most important pivot of computer education and computer applications in the advanced countries of the world, according to him. The growth of GIS- which is an applied field of geography- can be traced back to past development in land evaluation and remote sensing of the environment as well as the quantitative and computer revolutions. Hence, the importance of GIS in investigating environmental, cultural and economic issues cannot be overemphasized. That perhaps explains why it is being taught as a compulsory course in most departments of geography of Nigerian Universities and Polytechnics offering topographical sciences. GIS is perceived to be a very important tool, just like statistical techniques and maps are to geographers. A cursory look at literature will reveal that GIS does not have a universally acceptable definition. Nevertheless, Maguire et al (1991) maintain that the various ideas about GIS can be synthesized and presented in the form of three distinct but overlapping views: map, data-base and spatial analysis views. In area of practical applications, basic questions that can be investigated using GIS after (Rhind, 1990) include: 1 Location… What is at…? 2 Condition Where (how) is at…? 3 Trend What has changed…? 4 Routing Which is the best way…? 5 Pattern What is the pattern…? 6 Modeling What if…? Abler (1988) states that the GIS technology is to geographical, and by implication, environmental analyses what microscope, the telescope, and computers have been to other sciences. It could therefore be the catalyst needed to dissolve the regional-systematic and human-physical dichotomies that have long plagued geography and similar areas. GIS, according to Openshaw (1991), provides a platform for ‘doing geography’ and by implication, sister subjects in the 1990s and in this millennium. What of Sustainable Development? Conroy and Litvinof (1988) observed that there is a new jargon phrase: sustainable development in the development business. It stems, from a concern that the hitherto many activities undertaken in the name of development have actually squandered the resources upon which development is based. This argument was also advanced in Spore 24(1989) with the following remarks ‘… it does not make sense to meet the needs of people today if this leaves no tomorrow for their children.’ In effect, Dogo (2001) observed that development must be sustainable. The World Commission on the Environment and Development (WCED) better known as the Brundtland Commission of 1987, made it perfectly clear that from now on-wards development must be lasting or sustainable; and economic progress must be matched by the management of resources. The WCED has defined sustainable development as: ‘development that meets the needs of the poorest without compromising the ability of future generation to meet their own needs’ (WCED, 1987). So what about GIS and Sustainable Development? We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibres connect us with our fellow human beings; and among those fibres, are sympathetic threads, our actions run as causes, and they come back to us as effects- Melville Herman. ‘An education isn’t how much you have committed to memory, or even how much you know. It’s being able to differentiate between what you know and what you don’t’ – Anatole France. A man who won’t die for something is not fit to live- Martin L King, Jr. Many people have cynically said that there are so many people in Africa with “PHDs”. That is: POVERTY, HUNGER & DISEASES. In fact, one Medical Doctor told us the other day while in medical school they were told that human beings on earth have three major problems and they include: POVERTY, IGNORANCE & DISEASE. People have to survive on earth hence there is the need to consume the natural resources given to us by God. But sometimes people overdo it and this leads to irreversible environmental degradation. The need therefore for environmentalists to bring to bear their knowledge of GIS and its applications in addressing problems bedeviling human beings cannot be overemphasized. GIS should be used as a tool for facilitating total development but in a sustainable way. There is need for application of GIS in investigations in the field, like the environmental impact assessment (EIA). There is the need of taking concrete actions too. After all, it has been said that the greatest aim of education is not knowledge but action (Herbert Spencer) and ‘talk does not cook rice’ – Chinese Proverb. REFERENCES Abler, R.F. (1988) ‘ Awards, Rewards and Excellence: Keeping Geography Alive and Well’ Professional Geographer, 40: 135-40 Areola, O. (1994) ‘Geographic Sense and National Development’ in The Nigerian Geographical Journal, New Series, Vol. 1 p.22. http://www.gis.com/whatisgis/index.html (accessed on 15/5/2010) Conroy, C. & Litvinoff, M. (eds.) (1988) The Greening Aid. Sustainable Livelihoods in Practice, Earthscan and IIED, London. Dogo, B. (2001) ‘The Nature and Characteristics of Social Facilities in the Rural Areas of the Jos Plateau ‘ Unpublished PhD Thesis, Dept of Geography and Planning, University of Jos, Jos. Maguire, D. J. et al (eds.) (1991) Geographic Information Systems: Principles and Applications. Longman, Sussex. Openshaw, S (1991) ‘A View of the GIS crisis in Geography, or Using GIS to Dumpty- Dumpty back together again’ in Environment and Planning A Vol. 23, pp 621- 628 Rhind, D.W (1990) ‘Global Databases and GIS’ in Foster, M.J. & Shand, P.J. (eds.) The Association for Geographic Information Year Book, 1990. Taylor and Francis and Miles Arnold, London, pp 218-23 SPORE (1989) Vols. 23 & 24. Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation, CTA, Wageningen, The Netherlands. WCED (1987) Our Common Future. Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development. OUP, London. |
