Andrew
THIS week got me wandering once again back to the seasons of my youth, when I —with a group of like-minded learners — would burn the midnight candle, preparing for examinations.
There was such deathly silence in our dormitory at Nyazura Mission in Manicaland province that one would hear even a pen drop as we put to good use the money our parents had sweated for to pay our fees.
We were labelled “bookworms”, “studious students”, “vanzveri” and “vafana vedata” because of our undying quest to excel.
Fast-forward to today, over three decades later, the terrain has changed.
The moment jacarandas went into bloom, we knew it was exam time and we swam with the current.
Sadly, this is no longer the case these days and no signs are heeded as students follow the pleasures of this world unrestrained.
It is now difficult to separate learners from chancers who appear to be in school because they simply have to.
Learners nowadays no longer commit themselves to study.
This cuts across all ages and does not matter whether one is in Grade Seven, Form Two, doing Ordinary Level or Advanced Level.
There is a worm that is eating into our children.
They no longer focus on education, but are preoccupied with fashion, members of the opposite sex and music.
I once intercepted a love letter sent by a young man to his heartthrob and came to the conclusion that a moral broom was needed to sweep the world in which our children are living.
“You came into my life, and everything changed for good. I am a much happier person now because you are the reason behind my joy. Knowing that you love me, I have started to love myself and take good care of myself because I know how important I am to you. I can’t stop falling in love with you over and over,” the boy wrote.
When I showed it to a colleague, he pulled out a funny one, which does the rounds in boarding schools and rural setups.
“How are you pulling the wagons of master life? Here, life is half sugar, half ginger. You are my sweet chitekete, my bhonzo renyama, my svusvurandadya mhodzi yechingwa. When I first met you, I thought there was a tsunami in Heaven because beautiful creatures like you are rare,” read the letter.
To my chagrin, learners will be busy weaving these webs of words at the expense of their studies.
Forget that money is scarce these days, children are doing worse in the communities in which we live.
There is a lot of nonsense going on, with drug abuse and sex parties now the order of the day.
“Nyika kwayava kuenda, hapana achaidzora kumawere, kunotyisa. Vanhu vaye havachatya kufa, vakutorwira kuda kuona anotanga kufa. Kana kudovayambira hapana achanzwa, takungotarisa kwazvinoperera. Vanoti musi waunofa yaguma kwauri vanosara tosara tichienda mberi,” sang the late Marshall Munhumumwe and his trailblazing Four Brothers in this smash hit “Kumawere”.
True to the song, the world is on the edge, with children doing themselves more harm than good.
“Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school,” posited Albert Einstein.
In light of the above statement, one really shudders to think what breed of learners has invaded the country’s education system.
This comes at a time when there are endless reports of examination paper leaks. Learners of today are now more focused on passing exams and not acquiring knowledge. One wonders how they will apply themselves in life.
It is never too late to correct one’s ways.
Inotambika mughetto.
Feedback: [email protected].
Online Reporter