By Isaac N. Obasi
HE spoke no words to me and I was not one of his students. Yet Prof. Isidore Okpewho was one of the great minds at the University of Ibadan who inspired and influenced my decision to join the academic profession after graduation. From my hall of residence (Zik Hall), going to Kenneth Dike (central) library (through the pathway between the lawn tennis court and the Faculty of Arts complex), I was for many times seeing his window open with him reading and doing other academic work.
Again, while coming back from the library through the same path, his light would then be on and one could still see him working. I knew some other students who took notice of his studiousness and I was of one those who were inspired by the silent power of his actions as a studious and excellent academic. This was how I first knew his name. The feat he achieved later in his career {among which was his being a recipient of the prestigious Nigeria National Order of Merit (NNOM) in 2010} came to no one as a surprise.
This says a lot of the silent influence of teachers along the educational pipeline – from early childhood stage to the tertiary level. Many teachers have taught their students through their actions and not by speaking any word.
Talking about a teacher’s influence on students, do we still have such in abundance today or are we experiencing a vanishing culture of such influence? One encounter few days ago is very instructive. After reading Nduka Otiono’s article titled ‘Farewell, Isidore Okpewho’ (Saturday Sun, September 10, 2016) which had his picture, I called two of my female children who were incidentally nearby.
After showing them the picture of Prof. Okpewho and telling them that he was one of those who inspired me into lecturing, I asked if lecturers have inspired them or served as their role models. The senior one asked in what way(s) – academically, morally or both? The younger one quickly retorted that none has so far inspired her because of some unethical pecuniary practices. But she quickly recollected that one lecturer actually made an impression on her because he is a man of his words and never collected money from students. The senior one categorically said that no lecturer inspired her throughout her four years in the university. I was shocked because they were referring to two different faith-based private universities.
I later extended the question to their male siblings. The senior one mentioned one lecturer whose teaching style captivated him most, while the younger one mentioned also one lecturer who impressed him in three ways namely his excellent teaching style, his rendering advice on how to improve their skills in this competitive age, and also his giving them good moral advice on life-survival principles. Although this is an infinitesimal sample for any meaningful inductive analysis, it nevertheless provides a clue as to how lecturers can openly influence their students. But what of the hidden or silent influence which many lecturers and teachers also do exercise?
The likes of Prof. Isidore Okpewho exercised this form of influence which is important in creating a critical mass of students who can make positive mark in the wider society after graduation. If it is true that teachers silently mould characters, Prof. Okpewho actually influenced many positively as a remarkable scholar. When a teacher studiously carries out his/her daily duties and leads by example, many students are bound to be influenced to the wider benefit to the society.
The reverse is catastrophic as many students also have copied unspeakable unethical behaviours from their teachers without such teachers knowing. If lecturers inspire students as Prof. Okpewho did with his studiousness, a critical mass of well-behaved graduates can be reasonably expected. But when the reverse is pervasively the case, I am afraid, many of our graduates would be worse than our political leaders who argue that budget padding is not corruption.
This is perhaps why many student leaders at various levels (departmental, faculty, and campus-wide) have embezzled funds with impunity. Regrettably, many of our politicians were student leaders and it is my hypothesis that a good number of them learnt their corrupt way of life as students. I reason that what we are witnessing at the political level is partly a reflection of learning without-character and partly because of some other reasons.
All hope is not lost as the likes of Prof. Isidore Okpewho are still on our campuses today. But the issue is whether such number can exert an appreciable level of influence on our students. I raise this issue with some level of frustration because it appears that such lecturers are not producing a critical mass of morally regenerated graduates this nation needs and who can also give hope that the fight against corruption can be widely imbibed. However, in this era of President Buhari’s Change Begins with Me sloganeering campaign (which some have received with cynicism), it is important to point out that teachers at all levels have a big role to play in character formation and re-orientation.
Although, I know that the National Orientation Agency (NOA) and the various media houses have a daunting task convincing anyone that change should begin with the citizens rather than with political leaders (whose silent influence through leading-by-example constitute a more persuasive force), I still believe that a critical mass of followers would be easier to win in our educational institutions than in the wider society.
The NOA should therefore consider partnering with educational institutions at all levels to see how the Change Begins with Me campaign can create a critical mass of followers among students and teachers. I suggest this because of the powerful influence of a teacher which Prof. Isidore Okpewho’s professional academic life exemplified. May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace.
Prof. Obasi teaches Public Administration at the University of Abuja