By Medinat Kanabe
Lagos State Commissioner for Education, Folasade Adefisayo, has debunked reports (not by this newspaper) that the state has pegged Junior Secondary School enrolment at 12 years.
She told our reporter that no decision to that effect has been taken.
“Discussions are still ongoing. A group of concerned people had come to us, NGOs, concerned parents and other stakeholders.
“They told us that many private schools in Lagos don’t have primary six as a result don’t provide the full curriculum and children were going to secondary school from primary five, even as underage.
“After they left, we set up a committee that is still looking into it. What I think happened is that somebody got a hold of our minute, got excited and went ahead to publish.
“A circular has not been issued yet. In fact, we concluded that a small group like ours cannot make such a decision, that we must talk to as many stakeholders as possible. It is work in progress,” she said.
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Speaking on why she believes children should get to primary six, she said the problem is not at the beginning but the end.
“When you have a 14 or 15-year-old child in a university, in an adult environment, that’s when the biggest problem starts.
“I always ask parents if they want their 15-year-old n an adult environment where people are making choices about sex, relationship, and their careers,” she added.
Adefisayo said while a Primary 4 pupil can be academically brilliant, he or she may lack social, emotional skills and maturity, which are developed with age.
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