IT is not by accident. Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola is returning the lost glory of the education sector in his state.
The re-classification of schools to Elementary, Middle and High schools was a direct product of a summit held to reposition the sector. According to the Deputy Governor, Mrs Titi Laoye-Tomori, who doubled as the Commissioner of Education, “the re-classification policy is a conscious effort toward repositioning schools in our state from what we met in 2010 to its rightful position of honour and excellence.
“It is not in any way a system of merger as some people mischievously say. It tends towards restructuring the schools in all ramifications for better performance and a means of giving socio-economic power to these future leaders”, she said.
Tomori insisted that the act of restructuring the educational system in Osun and make it meaningful must start from the beginning.
It is in the light of this that the Chairman, Osun State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Prince Felix Awofisayo at a workshop organised for quality assurance officers recently, reiterated the determination of the board to resuscitate qualitative education from its root.
He explained that comprehensive analysis of the psychology of the pupils and students has revealed that, conducive environment with modern facilities and moderate incentives drastically reduce truancy and absenteeism, and aid the level of learning and assimilation in no small way.
“You will agree with me that this present administration is strongly determined to reform education sector in the state with passion and utmost commitment, particularly in Elementary and Middle Schools, which form the foundation phase of educational growth and development across the globe.
“We have embarked on aggressive and massive infrastructural developments such as construction of new 22 standard Middle schools 20 Elementary Schools of 1000 capacity in bungalows and storey buildings and 34(6-10) classrooms at Ife Odan and Sekona fully equipped with modern students and pupils’ furniture, ICT equipment, science laboratories, water and electricity,” he said.
The Permanent Secretary of the board, Alhaji Fatai Kolawole said there was a profound priority on basic education by the Aregbesola led administration, “for the purpose of building sustainable and strong academic foundation for pupils in the state and make them responsible citizens”.
According to him,” there is indeed a passionate focus and emphasis on basic education, that was what informed the re-classification of schools for greater efficiency and optimal maximisation of human resources, the policy intrinsically reformed the 6-3-3-4 , where a pupil will spend his four years in the Elementary school, another five years in the Middle school, and the rest three in the high school.
“It is in the face of this dangerous anomaly that governor Rauf Aregbesola accessed a loan to the tune of N11bn(Eleven billion naira) for the provision of infrastructure not only in the elementary schools but including some of the dilapidated high schools in the state.
“He also initiated the school feeding system, where pupils at the elementary schools were given lunch daily, to make school more attractive to them, and give them the sense of home away from home; the policy that the government still sustain up till this moment despite the economic distress, “he said.
Speaking at the multi-million naira Gbongan Olufi Middle School recently Governor Rauf Aregbesola expressed his resolve to build 100 elementary schools where he re-emphasised the need for prioritising basic education as the bedrock for reliable and strong educational system.
Also, at the inauguration of Anthony Uduofia Government Elementary School in Osogbo on Tuesday, January 12, the governor disclosed that N140,000,000 was expended on the 1000-capacity school, which was named after the first military administrator of the state, Navy Captain Anthony Uduofia(Rtd)
According to the governor, the school presently has about 600 pupils and hopes to get more pupils to fill up the vacant seats.
“We spent about N140,000 000 (One hundred and forty millions Naira) to complete the school, including furniture, land scaping and esthetics ,” he said.
Aregbesola maintained that it was criminal to use monies that were meant for building infrastructure to pay salaries, and implored youths to brace up and engage in productive activities that will create job and wealth to their people and also serve as reliable source of taxation for the government.
However, a Headmaster in one of the newly built schools, Methodist Elementary school, Oke-Omi, Osu, in the Osun East senatorial district, Mr Fagbemiro Idowu lauded the initiative of the government to change the face of schools in the state, saying the modern structure, coupled with school feeding system has increased attendance with about 45 per cent.
Also, the Facility Manager at the 1, 200-capacity Middle School, Modakeke, Mrs Grace Akindipe told the Nation that the infrastructural developments in schools across the state has impacted tremendously on the pupils and students alike, and raised the bar of academic excellence.
Speaking in the same vein, a community leader and social crusader at Ipetumodu in Ife North Council Area of the state, where another 900 -capacity Elementary School was sited, Chief Banire Timehin said the unique policy in the educational sector of Osun in the year 2016 was the Community Based School Management Committee (CBSMC).
In his words” many Nigerians, especially, the younger generation may have forgotten that schools used to select upstanding members of the community where such schools were located as management committee being in charge of the schools from the standpoint of collective community ownership of these schools.
This arrangement tends to bond the people in the community and the schools together. When each community sees the neighbourhood school projects as their own, a sense of collective ownership and a bond with the school becomes feasible.
