APQ - APPON PHILOSOPHICAL QUARTERLY

There is a need to address the declining educational standards in Nigeria. Using the old methods that yielded the present unacceptable result might mean repeating the same process and getting to the same conclusion. This paper re-examines the age-old assumption that philosophy is not for the young and shows that this assumption has been debunked following educational policies and practices in some advanced states in the world. It becomes imperative to try a new way that has worked for other nations of the world in order to get a better result for Nigeria. The solution suggested here is not a quick fix but a gradual revolutionary approach aimed at identifying the cause of the decline, and proffering a solution to the problem. This paper argues that the exclusion of philosophy courses in pre-tertiary education has adversely contributed to the decline in quality education. While making case for philosophy literacy from the basic level, it recommends the introduction of implementable policies for philosophy literacy in the primary and secondary levels of education in Nigeria. This would allow learners to take the initiative, and become confident and self-reliant in the pursuit of their research and dream careers. This surely will be a step in the right direction for purposeful education needed for the production of critical and actively creative manpower in the 21st-century.

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