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Education is not a scam; it is immensely rewarding

The higher you go in garnering knowledge and certifications, the more you realise both what you know and what you don't know. As you climb the academic ladder, you become more cautious and humble.

When I only had a first degree, I was reckless in my writing, confidently making submissions without leaving room for amendments or debate. I remember when my supervisor was assigned to me for my Master’s dissertation at the University of Strathclyde. The first person informed was my wingman and ABURO, Dr. Fisayo Ajala. Fisayo read my supervisor’s citation and remarked, “Bro, you’ll work o.” Another Ph.D. holder, a female friend who was with him at the time, said something similar, and we discussed it at length.

At that point, because I was reading so much and adapting various writing styles from writers I admired, I told Fisayo and the other lady, “even she sef go take say she meet person.” My dear people, I wrote the proposal and Chapter One just once, but my literature review, methodology, and analysis were a different story. My supervisor was meticulous and passionate about facts and figures. I was even more (un)lucky to be working on the Russia-Ukraine war using two UK newspapers she was familiar with. She was particularly focused on gender and feminism, so I had to be cautious and political with my language. I couldn't trick her! She had a First Class in English (I only had a Second Class, Upper Division), a Distinction in Communication and Journalism (M.A) (Scholarship), and an award-winning Ph.D. in Gender Studies. How could I possibly trick her with words and language?

The essence of the matter is that in knowledge production, excellence and humility are key. Facts and figures are sacred. We don't make assertions and submissions without evidence. Writing is not done for its own sake but for documentation, information, and enlightenment. That is why Facebook is fast becoming a joke, where people confidently and recklessly write about things and fields they know little about, consequently misleading others who trust their judgment.

You’ll see someone who knows nothing about statistics blindly arguing about statistics with a professor of statistics, or another who doesn’t even know the history of his hometown arguing history with someone like “SAEDO”. It is difficult to find serious scholarship here. All thanks to the likes of the late Prof. Pius Adesanmi, Profs. Saheed Aderinto, Farooq Kperogi, Mahfouz Adedimeji, Ayobami Ojebode, Senayon Olaoluwa, Muhammad S Balogun, James Yékú and a handful of others who still sustain scholarly excellence in this space.

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Source: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?id=100021714233164&story_fbid=1690255918374866