Beyond Buildings: Why Nigeria’s Education Policies Are Failing to Improve Learning

For over a decade, Nigeria’s educational policy landscape has been shaped by high-profile announcements touting new schools, textbook distributions, and construction rollouts. Despite these visible efforts, national learning outcomes have shown little improvement, revealing a deep disconnect between the infrastructure of schooling and the heart of learning itself.

Omolara Yetunde Oni, an educational systems architect and policy innovator, has emerged as one of Nigeria’s most compelling voices championing a more relational and student-centered approach to learning. Her contributions, originally developed and piloted in classrooms across Edo State—has since gained widespread adoption in multiple states nationwide, underscoring its scalability and impact.

Blending deep academic insight with interdisciplinary reform strategies, Omolara consistently challenges the infrastructure-heavy narrative of education policy, advocating instead for human-centered systems that elevate teacher-student dynamics, emotional well-being, and cultural relevance in pedagogy.

Drawing from years of research and the design of scalable pedagogical frameworks, Omolara highlights a troubling pattern: while educators and scholars have repeatedly provided clear, evidence-based strategies to improve learning, national policy too often sidelines this guidance in favor of infrastructure spending. She calls for a shift in focus — away from physical inputs and toward human-centered interventions.

Her proposed solutions include large-scale investment in teacher training focused on relational pedagogy, integration of culturally relevant materials to reflect indigenous knowledge systems, and the creation of policy frameworks that foster ethical leadership within schools. By prioritizing emotionally safe classrooms and culturally engaging content, Omolara believes Nigeria can radically improve student outcomes.

“We treat schools like factories-measuring success by inputs and outputs,” Omolara notes. “But schools are living communities. When learners feel supported and connected, when their values and identities are reflected in what they’re taught, learning flourishes.”

Omolara’s work has earned widespread recognition across the education sector and sparked crucial conversations on the country’s policy blind spots. As Nigeria continues to grapple with its educational challenges, her insights point to a vital shift: that true learning is cultivated not with bricks and mortar, but through trust, understanding, and meaningful connection between teachers and students.