BETWEEN BOOK WISDOM AND STREET WISDOM ‘ Femi Adekunle on Parenting
BETWEEN BOOK WISDOM AND STREET WISDOM
‘ Femi Adekunle on Parenting
Following my last article in Ebony Herald International Magazine, someone reached out to me to seek clarifications. In his words, “I enjoy your articles, thanks so much, and in your last article, may I ask that you further clarify your take on book wisdom and street wisdom”.
Some may not agree with me, but I dare to say, and I am extremely convinced about it, that this generation of our children, the ‘GenZees’, are a bundle of book wisdom and little or nil street wisdom.
Decades back when I was in school, and in the years my generation graduated from the university – in the ‘80s to the ‘90s, we witnessed a few first-class grades here and there. In a convocation year for most universities, it was possibly like four to six first-class graduates, at the most. Today, universities, both private and public witness first-class in the hundreds. It can be argued that the population of fresh graduates has grown exponentially between then and now, which is a fact, but if we look at it dispassionately, these kids are smashing records like no man’s business and setting incredibly new ones. CGPAs of 4.8, 4.9 and 5.0 are no longer a mirage, breaking 20, 30, and 40-year old records in some universities, a testament to the fact that these kids are indeed super smart.
Reasons are not far-fetched. One of which is the fact that, unlike their parents’ dispensation, they have access to information that were virtually inaccessible in those days, with the click of a button and the liberality of data. But that is where it ends.
Street smartness is never taught within the four walls of a school. Said someone, ”you can’t teach a child to be street smart, it is an art they must learn themselves. It starts with an unsupervised walk to school”. That’s the gospel truth. While we were young, we made our toys and created our own games. We sew our torn clothes with thread and needles, made traps to catch birds, rodents and fish, and explored the rudiments of language and culture. Even when our parents had cars, we commuted within town and travelled with public transport.
Today, sophisticated toys are bought for our children and when they spoil, they simply grab a new one. Online games are so much in abundance that both children and adults alike waste away indulging. Hardly are our children able to speak, let alone communicate in their mother-tongue as they see it as inferior to the English language.
Street smartness is indeed superior to book wisdom. This is the reason why people that go on to excel in business and entrepreneurship later in life are not necessarily 1st-class or 2nd-class upper graduates, but often those with grades below these, who went to school to acquire good western education, but combine it with lessons learnt from the streets. They eventually become the boss, employers of labour who eventually employ the first-class dudes.
Thus, I reiterate: in the centre-stage of life, the child that is book-wise only, will be dominated by the one that is street-wise, while the one that combines all will lead them both.
‘Femi Adekunle, a Parenting and Family Coach, writes from Abuja, Nigeria.
Email: femi383@gmail.com
WhatsApp: 08055103512
18th October, 2025
