Don Wants Retraining On Use Of English For Academic, Non-Academic Staff In Varsities

A Professor of Stylistics at the Lagos State University, Ojo, Gabriel Ajenifuja Osoba has advocated for training and retraining of both academic and non-academic staff in the Nigeria's university system, to further enhance their communication skills

The highly respected professor from the Department of English, Faculty of Arts  who was deliverying the university's 94th Inaugural Lecture titled 'What God Has Brought Together... Language And Literature At The Altar Of Stylistics', stressed the need for the Department of English in the university environment to extend its services beyond students who take Use Of English as compulsory GNS course in their studies 

The don on Tuesday during the inaugural lecture held inside Buba Marwa Auditorium on the Ojo main campus,  disagreed with notion on the falling standard of education in the country saying "the standard of education is really increasing with amazing knowledge, especially in science and technology. What is really happening is the lowering standard of communicative competence in English"

"It is hereby recommended that the Department not only provide services to students but also do so for staff – teaching and non-teaching. The positive or negative impression about any institution is determined by the quality of English used in their memos, letters and releases", he stated 

"I must confess that all of us as HoDs, Deans and Directors need training and retraining in the use of English for academic and administrative purposes. Some of us have not displayed the discipline of mind that writing requires. Nothing but our best effort is good enough for public consumption", Osoba said 

Osoba with over 40years experience as academic in the university system, also emphasized the need for the both  Faculties  of Arts and Sciences in the universities across the country to continue to connect in knowledge to form the Faculty of Adaptation which according to him, all students and scholars should pass through.

"Interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary approaches to research should continue with rigour and vigour if the gains of Science and Technology would not become the pain of humanity. Those in the Humanities should not stand aloof but totally shift from Arts for Arts’ sake to Arts for society’s sake and for the benefit of humankind. Humanities should humanize society if sanity should prevail", the don further recommended 

"The summary of my stance on the relationship between Language and Literature is that the two are good to go for wedlock. Language can look Literature in the face and declare: this is the flesh of my flesh while Literature can confidently tell Language: You are the bone of my bone. Language is a mere skeleton without the flesh of Literature. Put in another way, Language is the head and Literature is the heart of communication", he submitted 

Vice Chancellor of the university, Prof.Ibiyemi Olatunji-Bello who was represented by Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Prof. Adenike Boyo as the chairman of the 94th Inaugural lecture which is  the second to be delivered from the Department of English, described Prof. Ajenifuja Osoba as a renowned scholar in the field of Stylistics whose scholarly contributions had advanced the learning and teaching of English Language and Literature in the country