Pedagogy
Education
Increasing Your Surface Area of Luck: Nine Practices for Emerging African Professionals
The writer reflects on how she accumulated over $250,000 in grants, scholarships, and international opportunities as a young Cameroonian woman without family wealth or political connections—and attributes this not to talent alone but to deliberately expanding her exposure to opportunities and people. She offers nine practical strategies for other young Africans to do the same.
Five Reasons to Always Keep Learning
Learning is not passive reception but active, conscious choice. This reflection outlines five dimensions—accuracy, self-reliance, leverage, relevance, and distinction—that compound when we commit to continuous learning as a deliberate habit.
The Discipline Behind the Craft: Mr Leo's Three-Year Education
The writer reflects on Mr Leo's disciplined practice of writing at least two songs daily over three years—not necessarily as literal fact, but as a case study in how deliberate, sustained effort shapes mastery. The piece traces this regimen to Mr Leo's later success as a songwriter and ghostwriter for several Cameroonian artists, and uses it to argue for the unglamorous work that precedes visible achievement.
The World Belongs to Problem Solvers
A practical call to Cameroonians to identify unmet local needs—from waste management to agricultural processing—and build businesses around solving them. The writer argues that entrepreneurial problem-solving, not formal credentials, is the path to meaningful economic contribution and personal wealth.
C'est Dieu Qui Donne L'Anglais: English Teaching in Cameroon's Bilingual Crisis
This essay examines the chronic dysfunction of English-language education in Cameroon's francophone schools, tracing the phenomenon beyond discipline or resources to a deeper cultural and sociopolitical disregard for English itself. The writer documents the everyday contempt students and families show toward English, the toll this takes on teachers, and the uncomfortable question of whether systemic attitudes—not individual failure—have made language acquisition feel like a matter of divine grace rather than effort.
On Reading With an Open Mind
The writer reflects on how reading shaped their thinking and writing, then argues that many people lack genuine reading comprehension—not because they cannot decode words, but because they approach texts defensively, seeking points of disagreement rather than understanding. True reading requires setting aside personal bias to absorb ideas fully, even when imperfect.
The God Complex Approach to Reading
Poise examines why Cameroonians resist deep reading and intellectual engagement, arguing that this aversion to sustained learning—not external oppression—is the primary barrier to personal and collective progress. The writer frames reading as a competitive advantage and moral responsibility, contrasting the discipline of billionaire investors with the social media culture of quick consumption and public ignorance.
The Depreciation of Education: When Schooling Replaces Learning
The writer examines Cameroon's paradox: rapid expansion of schools alongside a collapsing education system that prioritizes exam performance over genuine learning, producing disoriented graduates unprepared for real-world challenges. The piece argues that parental pressure, corrupt institutions, and a curriculum divorced from practical reality have hollowed out the value of formal education.