May 8 2014

“YOU ALL HAVE TO DO YOUR OWN GROWING NO MATTER HOW TALL YOUR FATHERS ARE!” (VALEDICTORY SPEECH 4)

ANOTHER VALEDICTORY ADDRESS TO GRADUATING STUDENTS OF MASON COLLEGE,FESTAC

Our Dear Students & Management Staff of Mason College.

You are welcome.

In most of my addresses at a couple of recent graduation/award ceremonies I have made a point of starting by thanking the good Lord for His mercies, His faithfulness and His blessings. I do this because it is evidently rewarding to thank Him for what He has done to induce Him to do more. A person who is not thankful for what he was given isn’t likely to be thankful for what he is going to get. Let us therefore count our blessings at every opportunity. If we would not be thankful for what we have achieved, let us be thankful for dangers we have been delivered from.

As part of the yearly stock taking, you would also have noted that there are some prominent issues which usually come up in my addresses at these ceremonies.These include:

-future of the average Nigerian citizen.

– students and other Nigerian youths graduating from many institutions of Higher Learning.

– the roles of professional Educators in integrating utility into education.

-unwillingness of students at applying what has been learnt in school to practical life.

-scarcity of motivational variables due to dearth of appropriate role models in society.

-scantiness of institutional structures helpful to youths for focusing on their areas of comparative advantage and for helping them develop their unique endowments.

-indifference of students to academic work or tutors because the end point of all academic endeavour, to them, is hazy and do not go beyond passing examinations and obtaining certificates.

-apathy, on the part of students, to dig deep for facts that might be useful to them later in life.

-discouraging signals to young people because of non-existent job opportunities for their elder brothers/sisters long after graduation from higher institutions.

– weakness of the economy for job creation and incubation of small enterprises.

– necessity for skills acquisition for constituting an indispensable component of utility education for youths in Nigeria.

-high level of social and ethical decadence in the society whereby political opportunism and mediocrity have replaced hard work and merit.

Let us look at some of these issues and what your college wants you to go away with as you graduate.

SKILLS ACQUISITION/UTILITY EDUCATION

On the necessity for skills acquisition to constitute an indispensable component of utility education for Nigerian youth, it is quite disturbing that every year, educational institutions turn out millions of young people who lack the basic skills necessary for success in an information oriented economy. Our foresight at Mason College led the management, many years back, to make computer studies a crucial part of our curriculum. Though we do not teach practical carpentary and bricklaying, we have prepared our students in necessary academic skills, like perfecting their ability to write composition as a way of expressing their opinions powerfully.We have taught them skills that have helped them improve their spoken English and undertake the art of Public Speaking. We have also taken them on familiarization tours and excursions targeted at improving and enhancing their social mannerisms and imbuing them with the ability to live their lives in a caring and conscientious manner, being courteous, being cultured, matured and courtly in their social interactions.

INDIFFERENCE TO ACADEMIC THINKING

My views about indifference of students to academic work and continuing education is obvious from their apathy to dig deep for facts that might be useful to them later in life. In this regard, I urge our graduating class to look beyond the discouraging signals embedded in a weak national economy and absence of job opportunities. They should rather focus on job creation and incubation of small enterprises. Computer based support services such as graphics, and desktop publishing, poultry, small fish pond farming e.t.c. are areas you can dig deep into and in a short time you would have become employers of labor. The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) has programs to train youths on credit sourcing and utilization from their funds. Ask the right questions. Make an effort to find out from those around you how you can go about fulfilling your dreams. But start right away. Not when you are about to graduate from a university!

YOU ALL HAVE TO DO YOUR OWN GROWING!

However,it is important to note that no matter what secrets of success Mason College endowed you with, they will not work for you unless you work with them. You are made for action and promptness. Success simply takes good ideas and put them to work. What the free enterprise system really means is that the more enterprising you are the freer you are. What we all need is less emphasis on free and more on enterprise. Go to work! No one can build a personal destiny upon the faith or experience of another person. Believe me “YOU ALL HAVE TO DO YOUR OWN GROWING, NO MATTER HOW TALL YOUR DADS ARE!”.

HARD WORK PAYS

Don’t end up like concrete, all mixed up and permanently set. The road to success is always under construction. Yesterday’s methods in today’s world probably won’t be in business tomorrow. The same kind of thinking and training that brought you to where you are today will not necessarily take you where you want to go. The Holy Bible in the Book of Mark, chapter 2 told us of 4 men who came to Jesus carrying a paralyzed man on a stretcher and when they found that they couldn’t get to Jesus through the crowd, they dug through the clay roof above his head and lowered the sick man on his stretcher right in front of Jesus. On noting their faith and hard work, Jesus healed the man of his paralysis. Nigeria’s current economic and social environment has paralyzed many young men and women and only those who are willing to dig through the clay roof especially through their minds will be able to lower themselves in front of the few available opportunities.

DON’T FOLLOW ANYONE WHO IS GOING NOWHERE

In future you are going to need your peers. But after you leave here, your associations will change. Some of your new friends may not want you to go on at a pace you prefer. They may want you to stay where they are. But always remember what your College is telling you today. “Friends that do not increase you, will eventually decrease you”. Our advice is simple. “Don’t follow anyone who’s not going anywhere”. It is better to be alone than being in a wrong company.

PREDICT YOUR UNIQUE PURPOSE

You can predict your future by an awareness of your unique purpose. Too many people know where they are running from, but not where they are running to. First, concentrate on finding your purpose, then concentrate on fulfilling it. It has been said that having a powerful “why” will provide you with a necessary “how”. Purpose, not money, can be your strongest asset. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “If a man hasn’t discovered something that he will die for, he is not fit to live”. The purpose of life is to have a life of purpose. At the beginning of each year from now on and for the rest of your lives, ask yourself what your life purpose is? Pursue the answer and you will never fail in life.

NO EXCUSES PLEASE

When it comes to excuses, the world is full of great inventors. So invent a way, not an excuse. Do not spend half of your life telling people the great things you would have done and the other half giving excuses why you did not do them. An excuse is a foundation used for building a house of failure. The book of Proverbs says, “Work brings profit, talk brings poverty” Do not make excuses, make progress.

LET YOUR IMAGINATIONS FLY

Great ambassadors of Mason College, never forget that you were created for creativity. Your eyes are designed to look for opportunities, your ears to listen for direction, your mind to demand challenges and your hearts to believe in success in life. Unlike an air plane, your imagination can take off day or night in any kind of circumstances. Let it fly! I wish each of you the best you can imagine

Please remember the major points of this valedictory address in future.

Good Luck.

May 6 2014

WHY EXAMINATION MALPRACTICES MAY CONTINUE TO BE ATTRACTIVE TO NIGERIAN STUDENTS (VALEDICTORY SPEECH 3)

AT A SPEECH/AWARDS CEREMONY FOR GRADUATING STUDENTS OF MASON COLLEGE,FESTAC

DIRECTOR’S ADDRESS

Our Honorable Guests, Parents, Press, Graduating Students, Staff Members , other students and invitees. You are welcome.

Today we give a thousand thanks to the good Lord for making it possible to gather here for what may turn out to be a period of testimonies on and about our students, honored guests, staff and parents.

In a way it is also a moment to pat different people on their backs and offer congratulatory words to our students and their parents for staying the course and for providing financial, moral and technical back-up for the school and students.

It is a day to tell our ex-SS3 students that their SPRING HAS SPRUNG and that its time to move on.

However we shall do this while sharing some experiences about them and our honored guests too. Let me start with honored guests who are made up essentially of our parents and ex-staff members (Experiences with each person are at this stage recounted with emphasis on their contributions to the school).

In congratulating our students we must also think about the future of our university graduates. The future of an average Nigerian citizen will usually be linked to the conditions that will be present in our country then. So the next question is what is going to be the future or the fate of our motherland this year or next year or in 2007 or thereafter? Are they questions we must leave hanging in the air while we express our various opinions strongly in private? How can such attitude help the future of those graduating today?

A few years ago at an August occasion like this we recounted the dilemma the Nigerian students continue to face not only when they are out of school but even when they are in school. Many educators fail to recognize these factors and therefore find it impossible to know what exactly should be their roles in the overall scenario.

Firstly, students find it difficult to link what they learn in school/classrooms with genuine productive activities in our society. None of our students have real heroes except perhaps in people like Wole Soyinka and Chinua Achebe whose books they read. The next sets of heroes for them are those to be found in Nigerian and foreign movies and music world. There is no real avenue in our country for a child to develop into Bill Gates or Isaac Newton or to become a REAL Nuclear Physicist. Put them in the most private schools and spend a lot of money to massage your ego that your child is at a really special school. But which Nigerian University can develop him or her into becoming a space scientist? Where do we have the REAL research laboratories to help in carrying out findings and putting a stop to Malaria, Sickle Cell Anemia, Aids, Hypertension or Diabetes? There is really no challenging environment for our students to dream in for becoming Nobel Prize Winner in Physics or Chemistry. It is my opinion that students do not think highly about academic work, school or tutors not because tutors do not wear the latest Gucci shoes but because the end point of all efforts to them is hazy and do not go beyond the passing of Examination and obtaining certificates. The need to really dig deep for facts which might be useful to them later in life is not of great importance to them.

Secondly, many secondary school students see their older brothers and sisters coming out with fantastic university degrees but without jobs after NYSC. They know about their brothers and sisters attending GMAT exams with 20,000 other graduates for 20 managements trainee places at Cadbury. Unilever or Zenith Bank.

Thirdly, they also see some jobs that are successful in Nigeria do not necessarily need great education. The most prominent job in this group is that of being a politician. What about fast food joints or some so – called places of worship where magic is performed and the pastors go about in different Hummer Jeeps? Again many of them know how hard their parents struggle to keep the family together with hard work but with almost nothing to show for their efforts at the end of the day.

My suggestion therefore is that in planning for the future of our children, we educators must continually plan to equip them with relevant skill acquisition methods that can make them more fulfilled whatever happens. I must say with pride that we do this at Mason College and we have products to back up this statements. One of our students finished school cert, in June and by August was already the manager of a cybercafé in Festac with over 20 systems. Today he is a student of Covenant University but he was really radiant the day he came back to school to inform us with some pride.

Apart from skill acquisition our students must understand that they face a lot of unfair weather in this country because of relatively meager resources which are released or doled in small pieces to the majority by a few fat cats. Therefore they must not fail to criticize these cats.In fact they should be prepared to fight against this very obvious injustice in the system. They must look forward to joining other groups of people who are interested in a complete overhaul of the system. Otherwise the suffering will go on for generations. To do this they must have their education continuously related by their schools to clear purposes in the classroom. They must perfect their compositions, improve their spoken English and practice public speaking as an art. They must learn more about Local and International etiquette. They may also need to identify those to push into the lagoon. At Mason College we attempt a great deal to teach our students the use of cutleries though corrections where many times only grudgingly accepted. But when you are out of the country as students, visitors or businessmen, you will understand that the average white man is a curious human being who may decide to do business with you by observing the way you combine the use of forks knives and spoons. Unfortunately the black man historically is discretely observed by them to know whether we are civilized or not through such norms. Remember we also gave you ideas about music from other lands. Without turning you into ballet dancers, we showed you at closed quarters what is meant by Samba, Rumba, Tango, Cha-Cha, Waltz, Foxtrot and Jive. We showed you that apart from the usual games there are also what we call unusual games. We took you to the National Stadium not only to participate in sports but to give you a database for reference in case you become future sports administrators in the country for all these your parents bore the expenses sometimes with pain. We did not stop there. We also made you to practice and compete with the so-called famous and big schools in the Shell Choral group. Thanks to the work of our late Mr. Enang the great musicologist and musician. May I respectfully at this juncture ask all those present to please rise up to observe a minute silence in honor of this great man who led our school to victory in the SHELL mUSIC competition but who passed away last year. He used to call me “Patrol” in a special way but I never really asked him why he did and never asked him what he meant by it. But both of us had a great understanding for beautiful music. Now I wish I had asked him.

Talking about your future, you must already know that this future might find you at LASU, UNILAG, Covenant, Ahmadu Bello, and UNN or in USA, Canada, Britain, Dubai,India or Hong Kong. You must remember that you have been given all round education with purpose at Mason College. Everything might not become obvious to you now but we know each of you will bloom in God’s own time. Ours is to plant the seed but God will add water and manure for its germination and bloom. Today our old students for your information have started some form of Mason College Festac Alumni. Just type Mason College Festac and you will see some of the old pictures they have already posted on the site. The school will in future decide how to be participatory in the alumni project.Just type Mason College Festac(now http://lagosbooksclub.wordpress.com) and you will see some of the old pictures posted on the site. You therefore have the means for being in contact with your seniors, classmates, juniors as well as the school. For this future the best we can wish you is that you find SUCCESS with HAPPINESS to live fulfilling lives.

It is a future that might challenge how deep your faith in our loving God is. It is a future that might ask you to prove that you are responsible family men and women. Or whether you are a boss that could be tough and yet be understanding with your subordinates.

The only certainty about this future is that it will eventually come. That future after Mason College has already begun for many of you. Some of you have traveled out of the country while many are already in higher institutions of learning. Many of you will still get your admissions into higher institutions by the Grace of God. Amen.

As you leave us please allow me to add the following part of which had been stated at similar gatherings:

1. That each of you should think more about becoming an employer of labor or becoming self-employed as quickly as possible instead of being a perpetual applicant. To do this search inside for the talent God has endowed yo with. If God says you will succeed through selling fried plantain, then let your fried plantain be the biggest and the best.

2.That you must remember that life will call on you in future to be different. Life can play you JAZZ while the others are experiencing Rhythm & Blues or Funk. Bur remember what A great French man once said. He said when you hear a different set of drums do not be afraid to step up to the beats of those drums no matter how far they may seem.

3.That you have to show the signs of your education at all times. Keep a library of books at home. Master the internet which is now the biggest library in the world. Decide when you will stop conversing in Pidgin English, which was a source of constant correction here. When you write formally or off the net do not disgrace your school or your teachers or yourself. Use past tense, apostrophes and plurals where you must. Note that the use of English by many University graduates today is very uncomplimentary.

Now the time has come for me to send you forth. Many times it is usually a very difficult moment for me but I will try to pull through. All ex ss3 students and or their representatives should please stand up. We are of course aware that only a representative group can be here today thanks to almighty WAEC. Please arrange yourselves in a circular mode within the space in front of you, while holding hands repeat the following after me 3 times.

“ALL ARE NEEDED BY EACH OTHER”

Now look at each other or hold each other in twos or threes and remember in future what I am about to tell you now.

“THE FRIENDSHIP THAT YOU HAVE BONDED TOGETHER IN MASON COLLEGE IS A LIFE LONG FRIENDSHIP WHICH CANNOT BE ERODED OR ERASED BY TIME, MARRIAGE, POSITION IN LIFE, RICHES, POVERTY, SICKNESS OR DEATH, I URGE YOU TODAY TO SEE YOURSELVES AS SIBLINGS OR COMRADES ACTING IN UNITY IN ALL GOOD THINGS ESPECIALLY IN THE NAME AND GLORY OF OUR LOVING GOD IN THE REMEMBRANCE OF REVEREND LESLIE DONALD MASON WHICH NAME WE BEAR” AMEN.

YOU ARE THEREFORE HEREBY SENT FORTH IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, THE SON, AND THE HOLY GHOST – AMEN.

THE LORD WILL DEVELOP YOU TO BE GOOD AMBASSADORS OF YOUR SCHOOL, EXCELLENT CHILDREN OF YOUR PARENTS AND FIREBRAND BUT HUMBLE-CITIZENS OF OUR DEAR COUNTRY….AMEN

Let me seize the opportunity to thank the school management past and present who have contributed in developing you. We again thank our parents for their care and for the fees they paid sometimes under difficult conditions. We pray that God will continue to replenish their purses IJN…..Amen

We also congratulate our students most of whom achieved excellent results in their WAEC, NECO exams. We look forward to hearing about your progress in future.

On behalf of the school I thank our Honored Guests, our Parents, Staff Members and others who are present today to witness the “pulling out” ceremony for our students.

Thank you,

O.O.ODUMOSU

DIRECTOR

May 4 2014

HOW CAN A SCHOOL OPERATE EFFECTIVELY WITHOUT A DETAILED ANNUAL PLAN?

…students and teachers of Mason College Festac on Alpha beach…excursion planned along with the annual plan

DEAR PRINCIPAL,

HOW DO YOU RUN A SCHOOL WITHOUT AN ANNUAL MASTER PLAN?

ANNUAL CALENDARS/TERM ACADEMIC TIME-TABLES

Most good school managers know the importance of an annual master plan otherwise called “calendar of school events”. In fact before an academic day-to-day timetable is put in place a global plan for the academic year/term must be at the back of their minds.Such a calendar will also point out days that might be out-of-bounds for day-to-day academic programs.

The net has many theories on the advantages and methods for building up a school’s calendar of annual events.In some cases these theories list out what should be included or left out.But most agree that each school has what in Nigeria we call “its own unique flava”. Please find below FOR PRACTICAL REFERENCE AND USE the annual events’ calendar of Mason College Festac for a particular year.We hope some school managers can grab some inspiration from the calendar and mix with their “local flava”. And we are not just referring to school’s down south or in the urban areas of the country alone.It does not matter whether you are in Oturkpo,Katsina-Ala, Gboko or Adikpo (all in Benue state) there is no reason you cannot join hands with a few others including those on NYSC to map out an annual but definite road for your school to follow.This of course must be with the consent of any higher authority in the school,if necessary.

What is presented below is the work of a TIMETABLE COMMITTEE of Mason College as later approved by the school’s General Management Team (GMT) made up of the Principal,Assistant Director and Director.An example of a covering letter/invitation to parents is also included…..MASON COLLEGE EVENTS CALENDAR