Crescent University Don Unveils Mashet As New Education Framework
A don at Crescent University, Abeokuta, Dr Kola Adesina has challenged the current global education outlook with a new learning framework that adds Humanities to the widely adopted STEM and STEAM model, naming it MASHET.
Adesina, a communication veteran and currently Head, Department of Mass Communication at the Ogun State-based institution, said the existing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and its later variant STEAM (which added Arts) have both ignored Humanities, a critical pillar for human development,
His new framework, MASHET, stands for Mathematics, Arts, Science, Humanities, Engineering, and Technology.
In a background to the framework, on his LinkedIn page, made available to our reporter, the Crescent University don explained that the missing 'H' is not a mere add-on but a fundamental shift on how formal education should be structured.
"STEM and STEAM have produced excellent technical minds over 20 years, but they have largely ignored social engineering leading to inadequate thinking in many instances," Adesina told our reporter in an interview.
"A graduate who can write code but cannot ask 'why' or 'what is just' is not truly educated. The Humanities is expected to teach context, ethics, real-time narratives and other courses, no machine can replace."
Adesina, a veteran journalist turned communication scholar, said he developed MASHET after two decades of study following his postgraduate certificate in education at Canterbury Christ Church University in the United Kingdom.
According to him, the study included observing many African students excel in technical subjects but struggle with critical analysis, ethical reasoning, and clear communication.
He noted that global conversations around education reform have increasingly questioned STEM's dominance. In 2023, UNESCO called for greater integration of social and human sciences into science education. Adesina said MASHET is a practical answer to that. He added that ‘some educators and policymakers across Africa are already calling for more details on how to integrate and teach it in schools and universities.
"We are not throwing away STEM. We are completing it," he said. "The 'H' is not an afterthought. It should be the centre."
According to Adesina, MASHET-aligned lessons would see engineering students study narrative ethics, technology students debate historical consequences of innovation, and science students practice persuasive writing alongside laboratory reports. Students should be able to ask further probing questions such as: What are the prospects and challenges of a new technology, and how does a new innovation affect society? etc.
Early reactions among African educators have been mixed. Some applaud the framework as long overdue. Others worry that adding another letter dilutes focus on technical skills that drive employment.
‘In Europe today and some other parts of the world, there is a widespread recognition of inadequacy of the focus on STEAM to the detriment of the societal values of humanity, ethics, contextual thinking, and other social engineering courses; leading to growing calls for more integration of Humanities into the technical curricula,” He said,
Adesina further explained that his goal is not fame but a simple shift in how general education curriculum are planned based on the context and needs of cultures and countries globally.
"I am a journalism lecturer. I teach people to ask questions. That is all I am doing, asking one big question: what did STEM and STEAM forget? The answer is 'H' (Humanities). And MASHET has put it back."
*Kehinde Ademuyiwa is a scholar, currently a Doctoral Researcher at North West University, South Africa.