Ige Monique Kent Okereke has worked with autism children and today she is happy to have transformed lives and changed destinies in the process. In this interview with Ogheneyoma Omarejedje, the CEO of Querencia talks about her passion for children and creating a better future for the country through them.
What inspired you to go into this line of business?
I have always been passionate about moulding lives and touching the lives of the people around me. I also love working with children and impacting on their lives for a better future. Personally, I am motivated this way and I love people to leave me better than when they first met me.
So, I would say that it is something that was just inbuilt with time, and I then became an educationist. It’s been a very interesting experience and I have no regret till date.
What was it like at the beginning?
I would say that because it was something I was really passionate about, I kept on looking at the positive side of life instead of the challenges. I must say that I have great love for children and this made things easy for me. And from the outset, I just wanted to be in a place to help somebody else get better. Going down memory lane, I would say that the only challenge I experienced was that I was exposed to so many people, with a lot of challenges. That did not deter me and with time, training and counselling, I overcame the odds. Today, I am a better trainer and I have learnt a lot of lessons over the years.
Who or what do you consider to be your greatest influence?
I have learnt a lot from the people around me and this experience has made me better, because I have improved on whatever I learn from others.
Most times, before I started enjoying the educational system I went for many programmes and I got lots of inspiration that helped to transform me to become who I am today. She has been a great pillar of support for me.
What are some of the changes that you want to see in the school and in the sector?
The change that I want to see in the school is that I want to see children have fun and learn at the same time. We need to make the learning environment more conducive and not just make it a serious business. I strongly believe that having fun while learning would make them to learn better and retain the knowledge better.
Where do you see the school in the next five years?
We have great dreams and I believe that they would have been achieved at that point. I see Querencia in the map of the world strategically located in the next five years, doing marvellous things all through the world and God will answer it.
Who do you consider as your motivating factor?
My mom. She is my role model. She has always told me to strive for what I need to do and that I should always put my best foot forward in all that I do. So she is my role model.
Tell us about your challenges and how you coped.
As I told you earlier, I was exposed to people that have autism and I was exposed to autism children and it was really tough. However, my passion was to improve on their lives and make them rediscover themselves and seeing this come to reality was a great experience for me.
The most touching for me were children who were using their mouths and tongues. We did not give up on every case and with counselling, we helped to transform their lives and carry them along even in a normal class room so that they don’t feel isolated. The amazing part of it all is that they actually turned out to do very well in their examination, which was a great source of inspiration for me.
What are the other areas that make you different from others?
At Querencia, we have a lot of foreign languages taught in our curriculum. These include Spanish, German, French, and Chinese languages. Interestingly, at the beginning, I didn’t want a lot of foreign languages but now I have realised that we need to expose the children to many languages. We are going to expose the children to many languages, so that where ever their find themselves, they will surely stand out.
What is your assessment of the sector?
When they say there is something wrong with the system, I totally agree. The issue is that we have a lot of people coming to the sector that do not know their onions. Unfortunately, many people are coming into the sector with a high focus on it as a business.
Sadly, it shouldn’t be that way because usually it is something that you may have to invest in for some time.
Has technology helped you to make a difference?
Yes, it has. Most of our learning is e-learning and we have the interactive board. Most of the things we do in the classes are actually based on technology and not just what see in the class room. Most of the students are computer literate, so most of our assignments and learning are done on computer.
What measures do you put in place to ensure that the children are safe?
In terms of child abuse, the truth is that sexual abuse is a real matter, no matter how much you try to avoid it. But we do more of sexual education and at the end of the day we will equip these children with the things they need to know, and to actually tell us when something is wrong.
It is important to have children that are empowered with knowledge, so that if anything goes wrong they can open up.