Education is the process by which one's mind develops through learning. It is the ardent transmission of the norms, values, morals and virtues from one generation of persons to the other. Education is a planned and organized process of learning, whether informal or formal, it is a means to an end. A society will consequently go extinct if it does not transmit its mores, norms, customs and values from one generation to the other.
Education therefore, is necessary for continuity. Younger generations of a society are acquainted with the tenets of their culture when they are adequately and properly educated. It is imperative that younger individuals of a society are made aware of what values are held in high esteem than others, so they too can transmit what they know to generations after them.
In West Africa, a parent will succinctly tell you he sends his son to school to obtain eventually a position of honor and dignity in the community, and to enable his daughter to marry in due course, a man of high social standing. The money spent on the education of the child is intended as an investment which will yield a handsome profit in the future, so that when the parents become old and infirm, they may be able to lean comfortably on their children. Education in this context is purely materialistic. Even when it is materialistic to the parents, it is beneficial to the educated child in several other ways.
Importantly, education helps the educated to be able to exist in his/her society maximally and contribute intelligently to the society's development. Education should be paramount in any nation's development plans and strategies, where a nation decides to forgo its educational needs to promote growth in other areas, that society is likely to hit a cul-de-sac because, a society cannot thrive without appropriately educating her populace. Something will always be amiss.
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