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Friday 27th October :: Education and training: Improves performance and cultures

A district commissioner in the Rift Valley recently ordered that all youth between 8-17 years, herding cattle instead of going to school, be taken to class by force.  He intimated that their lack of schooling makes them continue with age old habits of cattle rustling.  To some, this looks like a laughable matter but I cannot agree more with the DC.
It is indisputable that early education not only prepares us on how to face the world but also shapes our perceptions about life. Every society has its strongly embedded cultures governing the activities of all its members.  Without doubt, every society has a system of government, education, family, religion, economic activities and communication system. Some communities practiced cattle rustling as an economic activity. The culture is still prevalent for some.
Education on the other hand involved passing of communal traditions from one generation to the other, through myths and legends, narrated to children by their grandparents in most communities. Culture however is said to be dynamic and changes with time. This leads to the death of some traditions which are not in line with modernity. One major contribution to the Government’s free basic education programme is improvement of people’s behavior. Nobody should have any excuse of not taking advantage of the same.
Improved behavior modernizes cultures.  As the DC put it, education would reduce continuity of cattle rustling.  But education and training should go beyond improving our cultures. Unfortunately, most people stop learning after reaching a certain level of education or profession.  It is even difficult for majority to read a magazine or periodical on a given industry or trade, citing lack of time or interest.
This leads to training even at the work place. It changes behavior through imparting new knowledge and skills.  It also helps in changing people’s attitudes and perceptions.  What is known in economics as the law of diminishing returns applies to people in the workplace. Over time, staff performance rate continues reducing thus reduced efficiency. Continued training improves performance for such people. It also develops them as individuals. Developed individuals become empowered. This enables them not only to perform better but also be more relevant in improvement of human welfare.
Education and training should therefore be an ongoing process for not only changing behavior but also empowering the individual. It is unlikely that empowered individuals would continue involving themselves in out of date cultures. The district commissioner deserves support.

Meanwhile, not all training will be effective if applied wrongly or to the wrong subjects. Training needs must be properly evaluated before implementation. The training needs of an entrepreneur for example are different from those of his/her workers. Yet, both must undergo continuous training. Continuing training knows no boundaries. It is necessary for both big and small business, particularly SMEs.

Editor

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