The Nation Newspaper

Tag: parents

  • PARENTS, YOU ARE SLEEPING TOO MUCH!

    DEAR Aunty Temi, I’ve been reading your articles and I must say you are doing a great job. There’s a girl in my class who loves this new boy in science class and the boy said the same thing. I am scared that she’ll lose her virginity soon because a teacher caught her in a corner with the boy with the first two buttons of her blouse open, exposing her breasts. What should I do to help her please?

    Anne, 12

    Dear Aunty Temilolu,

    I need your help. When I was 15, I was raped and since then, different guys numbering up to 23 have had sex with me. I’m confused and so worried about my future as I am just seeking admission into the university. Please tell me what to do.

    Anonymous, 17

    Dear Aunty Temilolu,

    I was raped when I was 7 years old and ever since then I have always had the urge for sex to the extent that I used pillow, paper and cloth to satisfy this desire. I stopped last year but the urge is coming back again. Please advise me on what to do. Thanks ma.

    Adeola, 18

    Hi Temilolu,

    Thanks for the good work of educating our girls. I want you to talk to parents. Remind them that they are the caretakers of their children because many parents have failed in their responsibility of teaching their children EARLY in life.

    Anonymous

    My darling, precious, glorious, dignified, world-famous and heavenly celebrated Nigerian sisters,

    I am most delighted to be in touch with you again. The desperate text messages I daily get from a good number of you breaks my heart and I begin to wonder what you were taught or perhaps how you were raised in your impressionable years. What you and the guys around you are constantly bombarded with only make things worse. If the role model or idol of an average guy is a music artiste who sings nonsense, filth and lewd lyrics, if he fancies you, he would definitely pester you for sex and you being so naive and flattered that he thinks you are an angel fall for him and just loose all sense of proportion after all your mates are engaging in it. Honestly, there’s something seriously wrong with too many of you out there and your parents could have helped out. In this jet age and a crazy generation like this, parents ought to constantly and prayerfully drum a high sense of morality into kids right from when they are toddlers. However, it appears a lot of them are sleeping. Why should a girl of 12 be caught in an amorous situation with a boy? When I spoke with the girl who said she’s had 23 boyfriends between ages 15 -17, I was shocked when she told me the church where she worships-a citadel of holiness and prayers. Apparently, she hasn’t been listening to sermons against pre-marital sex. If something drastic is not done about her situation, I wonder what would become of her in the university.

    Sweeties, if parents are too busy at work, weighed down by the situation of the economy, lacking in morals or even parental responsibility then we need to rise up and help ourselves. Otherwise, not only would a lot of destinies be out rightly destroyed and unfulfilled, the next generation would eventually make the society unfit to live with almost everyone eliciting satanic vices. You need God to intervene in your life more than ever before. An innocent girl is raped and all of a sudden becomes a sex slave and is constantly yoked with the spirits of different guys with multiple partners transferred into her life.

    It is only the Spirit of God that moved over the waters in creation (Genesis 1: 2 ) that can recreate a lot of you whose minds and destinies have been contaminated and polluted as a result of  ungodly sex. It is the Holy Spirit that can ignite your souls and break all the evil soul ties that have registered themselves as a dangerous yoke in your life. This same spirit will gather your fragmented soul, patch you up and make you whole again. It will show you the safest routes to follow to your promised land before the end of this year. It will shine the light of God upon your paths and help you avoid satanic pitfalls. It is this same spirit that can empower you to possess all God has planned for you in 2016. Let’s all kneel down by our bedside tonight from 9pm- 9:30pm and pray this prayer until you sweat and the prayer resonates in your spirit.

    “Thou Spirit of God that moved over the waters, saturate my life in the name of Jesus.”

    I invite you to be my friend on facebook –TEMILOLU OKEOWO (not Temilolu okeowo girls club).

    Scam Alert: Temilolu okeowo girls club is a fake facebook account. Please do not like it or reply anybody seeking for financial help through any page using my name. Thank you!

  • Sallah: Emir tasks parents on child education

    The Emir of Kanam, Alhaji Muazu Mohammadu II, on Monday urged parents to get their children well educated.

    He made the plea this while delivering his Sallah message in Dengi, headquarters of Kanam Local Government of Plateau.

    The emir said that education remained the key component and veritable tool for the development of any successful nation.

    He said that the significance and relevance of education to the individual in particular and the society in general could be over-emphasised.

    “’No individual progresses well without education; so also, no nation becomes great without education.

    “Religious education also helps because the important thing is the use of the knowledge acquired for positive growth and development.

    “So, parent must do everything possible to ensure their wards get educated, ‘’ he said.

  • Soyinka to mentor pupils, parents

    Soyinka to mentor pupils, parents

    Nobel laureate Prof Wole Soyinka is scheduled to kick start activities to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Halifield School, Maryland, Lagos, with a keynote address today.

    Director of the school Mrs Halima Oke said Prof Soyinka would be speaking on the theme: ‘The dream, the reality and the possibilities,’ to mentor pupils and guests.

    In a briefing with reporters, Mrs Oke noted that this year’s celebration would run all through September, with various activities, the peak of which will be an opportunity to learn from Soyinka and notable motivational speaker Fela Durotoye.

    It will climax with a closing ceremony on September 20.

    Mrs Oke is optimistic that learning from such notable citizens will inspire her pupils.

    She said: “When you get to see a legend in childhood, it results in many things that we are not aware of immediately. So we have the expectation that our children will see Soyinka and want to be like him. He is a legend, he will be a motivation to our children to excel and most of them will be inspired to make a mark in their country and the world at large.”

    Oke said the school’s success and growth over the past 20 years were credited to staff loyalty and cooperation, as well as the satisfaction of raising children and working with understanding parents.

    She decried government’s poor attitude to developed schools, through multiple taxation, local government harassment, among others.

    “We are very good partners with the state government. We are compliant. But we have the local government always harassing us and when necessary, we go to court. They have forced us to buy our own transformer, they ask for certificates of fumigation, they even tried forcing us to build a recycling plant, but our lawyer fought against it, because even big estates don’t have such. We keep having these issues over and over again. It is unfortunate because government should know that there is a lot more we spend than our tax payments. So if they look at a school, and without even knowing the population but because it looks big, they impose big taxes on us, they seem insensitive.”

    She noted that her school prides itself in training the total child through theory, practical and engaging the child’s mind.

    She counseled government to broaden the curriculum to include morals, civic education and history.

    “We blend the Nigerian curriculum with the British and American curriculums. The Nigerian curriculum is strong but it is not broad enough. Imagine a curriculum without history. We buy storybooks that contain history, always looking for a little piece of our history to teach our children. We must know where we are coming from so that we can know where we are going and not making mistakes from the past,” she said.

     

  • Sterling Bank woos schools, parents with juicy offers

    Sterling Bank’s Back-To-School Campaign may provide succor for many parents, guardian, teachers and proprietors of schools in Nigeria as they prepare for the new school year in September.

    The primary target for the campaign are the primary and secondary schools (administrators, owners and teachers) while the secondary audience are all primary and secondary school-students and their parents.

    Areas covered under the campaign include school financing, asset finance, textbook and educational materials finance for schools; school fees finance for parents; coding and robotics Summer Boot Camp for children, and household equipment finance and training for teachers, among others.

    The Bank’s Group Head, Strategy & Finance, Mr. Shina Atilola in a statement, explained that the school fees financing solution was introduced to provide parents with instant financing for school fees and allow them put their kids in school while awaiting salaries and other receivables.

    He explained that under the Bank’s Asset finance scheme, existing and new account holders will qualify for short-term financing against receivables while “Sterling Bank can finance acquisition of Buses, ICT Infrastructure, Interactive Boards and other items the school may wish to purchase in the Back-to-School season under the asset finance scheme”.

    The chief strategist added that schools patronizing the bank can access finance for a 90-day tenor at good rates.

    “This would be an incentive to school owners as surveys have shown that a large number of schools have challenges with payment of salaries and for renovation projects when school fees are not fully received.  Existing and prospective schools can also enjoy free deployment of our Eduportal and Payment Gateway at no cost to the school. The solution, he noted, provides a platform to integrate the payment of school fees, levies and any other school-related payments. The platform also  aids record-keeping, and make for seamless day-to-day management of operations in schools.

    While the Bank offers schools a quick financing solution to purchase textbooks and learning materials from major publishers and bookshops like Learn Africa Plc, Doroena Books and other designated outlets for the school year, Atilola explained that schools that open salary accounts for their teachers this season will have their teachers qualify automatically for the bank’s Personal Financial Management and other training programmes (for both local and foreign courses).

    Under the Household Equipment Finance, he explained that teachers with salary accounts would qualify for discounted acquisition of household items with flexible payment plans.

  • Parents intercede for COWBELLPEDIA contestants as pupil sets record

    Parents intercede for COWBELLPEDIA contestants as pupil sets record

    With the best 108 of maths brain set for the television quiz stage of the Cowbellpedia maths competition, some parents have sought spiritual help  for their wards’ success.

    While teachers played the roles of counsellor and supporter, some parents were seen at the studio where the Cowbellpedia quiz competition was being recorded, praying for their wards, too tensed to concentrate while awaiting their turns.

    The prayer may have been necessitated by the brilliance exhibited by the pupils on set.  For instance, a contestant in the junior category, Oluwatunmise Idowu, of Scholars Universal Secondary School, Ota, Ogun State wowed everybody by answering 17 questions correctly in the 60 Seconds of fame round.

    With the feat, she beat the record of 15 questions set by the 2015 Cowbellpedia champion, Ayodeji Akinkuowo.

    One of the parents providing spiritual support for her ward was Mrs. Josephine Okeke, whose son, Favour, was one of the five representing Loyola Jesuit College, Gidan-Mangoro, Abuja.

    She spent most of her time entreating God to reward her son’s efforts.

    Okeke contested against Ayomide Ajayi of Bibo Oluwa Academy Ilesa, Osun State; Emmanuel Igban of Ambassador College, Ota, Ogun State; Isikanye Praise of Federal Government Academy, Suleja, Niger State; Ugozuchuwu Offor of University of Nigeria Secondary School, Enugu Campus; and Divine Uzagu of Federal Government College, Okposi, Abia State in the preliminary stage of the quiz.

    Mrs. Okeke, a pharmacist, who ‘dumped’ her career to support her children, said the prayers were necessary as effort is not enough.

    “The race is not for the swif, but for God who shows mercy and God says: ‘I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy.’ I believe God for my son. I am standing in the gap for him. God cannot fail, so, my son can never fail,” she said.

    Another intercessor was Mrs Patience Okoh, who stood in the gap for her niece, Angelica Uzo, also of Loyola Jesuit College.

    “I am the mother here in Lagos, my sister called me up from Abuja yesterday that I should be here to monitor her. What it means is that I must do everything within my power to make her succeed and the best I can do is to pray. This I have been doing,” she remarked.

    Redemption Adebayo, a pupil of Model Secondary School, Alagbaka, Akure, Ondo State, said her father called her daily to pray that she makes it to the finals.

    “The whole family is praying for me, and we did a lot of prayers to seek God’s favour from the beginning of this competition,” she said.

    With one million up for grabs for each of the winners (and N400,000 for their teachers) in the junior and senior categories of the competition, as well as an all-expenses paid educational excursion outside the country, the prayers are in order. However, the finals would tell whose prayers God would answer.

    Last year, Akinkuowo of Adeyemi Demonstration Secondary School, Ondo State, won the senior category, while Munachi Ernest-Eze of Loyola Jesuit won the junior category.

    They got N750,000 each, while their teachers got N250,000. The schools also got five computers and printers.

     

  • Unity Schools fees hike: Minister, Perm Sec disagree

    Unity Schools fees hike: Minister, Perm Sec disagree

    National Parent and Teacher Association of Federal Government Colleges (NAPTAFEGC) at the weekend kicked against increase in the fees of Unity schools.

    NAPTAFEGC, in a communiqué by its National President, Dr. Gabriel Nnaji, after its National Executive Council meeting in Abuja, said the increase from N20,000 to N75,000 was untimely and insensitive by the government.

    Nnaji told reporters that the fee was increased on June 1 by the government.

    The communiqué reads: “That the increase of school fees from about N20,000 to about N75,000 in Unity colleges is most untimely and insensitive. An average Nigerian worker, whose minimum wage is N18,000, and who has one or two children in the Unity colleges, will be unable to keep his or her child or children in the Unity colleges.

    “The increase is a negation of the policy or principle that established Unity colleges, which is to make basic and secondary education affordable and accessible to an average pupil.

    “The association appeals to President Muhammadu Buhari and members of the National Assembly to compel the Federal Ministry of Education to revert to the old bills as the education of children is a right, and not a privilege.

    “The new fees, if not reversed, will force parents to withdraw their children from the Unity colleges.

    “The association will continue to partner the ministry  by complementing its efforts  in the provision of basic facilities in the Unity colleges.

    “The association appreciates the ministry in making the payment of insurance levy in the Unity colleges not compulsory, but optional.

    “The association frowns at any attempt to commercialise or make the cost of training children in the Unity colleges beyond the rich of an average parent.

    “Enough budgetary provision should be made and timely released to the Unity colleges to enable pupils to continue to compete favourably with those of other sound private schools.

    “The issue of security in Unity colleges must be given attention and commitment.

    “Pupils who have paid for books should always receive them in time and not when no longer needed.”

  • UK College seeks ways to help parents overcome forex challenge

    Abbey DLD Group of Colleges, a consortium of four colleges in the United Kingdom (UK) that prepares students for the best universities in the country, is discussing alternative ways to help parents address difficulties in getting foreign exchange for fees of their wards.

    Charles Johnson, Director of Sales in Africa for Abbey DLD, said at a press conference held in Lagos last Thursday, that some parents found it difficult to pay tuition and accommodation fees, and even send their children pocket money.

    To address the problem, he said the college may consider allowing them to pay in naira.

    “It has been very difficult for students to access Forex to pay fees in the past one year. There are parents who are finding it difficult to pay tuition fees and even send pocket money. We discussed in the Alpha group (management) to explore if parents can pay fees in the local currency,” said Johnson.

    However, Johnson assured parents that their wards would get the best possible preparation that would increase their chances of getting into top universities like Cambridge, Oxford and Imperial College, London.

    Students Admissions Manager for Abbey DLD in Africa, Muazu Jalaluddeen, highlighted the importance of high quality programmes – such as the ones offered by Abbey DLD Group of Colleges – for preparing students to secure a place in some of UK’s most prestigious universities.

    “Most Nigerian students often complete their secondary school education with an O’Level which is not the same as the required A’ Levels needed to gain entry into UK’s universities.

    “Our courses include comprehensive GCSE, A’ Level Programmes and a number of International Foundation Programmes,” Johnson said, adding that going to Abbey DLD will allow Nigerian students to “acclimatise” and achieve the grades they need to outdo other international students competing for places at top universities.

    He also explained the UK has an international reputation for the quality of its education system and qualifications offered by British schools, colleges and universities are recognised globally as hallmarks of excellence and distinction.

    Jalaluddeen said the two-year pre-university programme at Abbey DLD Group of Colleges not only allows Nigerian students to pass their A’ Levels with flying colours, but also helps them understand and get used to the British education system, which is slightly different from Nigeria.

    Abbey DLD Group of Colleges have first class reputations in the education community and in the wider employment world; reputations which grow every year with each new cohort of students.

    “Forty-nine per cent of international students achieved A-A* grades in their A’ levels and 25 per cent of students have secured places to study STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and maths) in 2015.

    Jalaluddeen said Nigeria has the highest number of African students in Abbey Colleges, though other African countries are also gradually catching up.

  • Don counsels parents on best child-parent bonding tactics

    Head of Department of Educational Foundation at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Prof Ngozi Osarenren, has advised parents to train their wards to resist peer pressure and guide their use of the social media.

    She said this at a parenting seminar tagged: “Godly Parenting seminar 2016”,  organised by Wellspring College, Omole Estate, Ikeja.

    The programme attracted many parents with children in the School. Prof Osarenren said good upbringing plays a vital role in children’s development, which is why those who imbibe their parents’ cardinal values hardly derail from it even when taught otherwise by peers.

    She said: “You must be able to bond with your child so that during those years of teenage rebelliousness, they know that they can always come to you; they know they have a friend in you. It is during this time that they rely on friends than family. You should be the friend they need.”

    Prof Osarenren rebuked parents who buy expensive gadgets for their children, saying that they are only spoiling them as it would have adverse effects in future.

    She said: “Some phones are not to be used by teenagers; do not buy them too expensive phones all in the name of I can afford to buy it or because since my parents could not afford these type of gadgets for me, I must buy for my own.”

    Principal of the college, Mrs Oluwayemisi Oloriade, said the seminar was organised for the parents because of the love they have for their pupils. She said the school cares about the emotional wellbeing of its pupils and does not focus only on their academic success.

    Mrs Oloriade said: “We intend to make sure that our pupils are emotionally balanced so that things become easy for us here in the school. We always advise the parents of our pupils to be available at all times so as to ensure that our pupils are well monitored, especially in this technological age.

    A parent, Mr Abiodun Olaiya said: ”I feel it is a good topic at the right time because homes are having issues. Children need to be parented the right way. The seminar is good because it will fine-tune parenting. I have always been using biblical teachings, but this seminar has been insightful and has taught me new things.”

    Popular actress, Ayo Adesanya, also a parent, said: “I have learnt how to manage my child, what category of person he belongs, the kind of behaviour he has and the best way to deal with those issues. Now I understand my child better. I am very grateful to the school.”

  • Taiwanese App for First-Time Parents

    What’s baby saying? A team in Taiwan made an app to tell parents if their baby is hungry, tired, in pain or needs a fresh diaper.

    Infant Crying Translator is a cloud-based program that can decode the crying of babies from the moment they’re born until they are six months old.

    It takes only 15 seconds. Tap “Record” in the app and a clip of the infant’s cry is uploaded to a cloud database. The file is quickly compared to an audio library and a verdict pops up onscreen.

    Accuracy reaches 92 percent for babies under 2 weeks old, according to Chuan-Yu Chang (張傳育), a head researcher.

    After winning an innovation award from Taiwan’s government in 2014, Infant Crying Translator went on sale in 2015 and now has some 10,000 users worldwide.

    Chang and his team hail from Taiwan, a high-tech island responsible for assembling some of the world’s top information and communication technology products.

    It’s also a place where the birthrate has slipped to one of the lowest in the world, as a high cost of living prompts more Taiwanese to put babies on hold in favor of careers.

    But developers are convinced that their baby reader has an important place beyond Taiwan and in the global market.

    For first-time parents of any nationality, the app could offer clarity and relief when faced with an inconsolable newborn.

    “From my own experience as a father, I know that sometimes when the baby cries, the parents feel a bit like crying, too,” Chang said.

    “Humans have emotions and they make mistakes. The app doesn’t get flustered. It simply reads the data.”

  • UI, parents, others to hold forum June 7

    UI, parents, others to hold forum June 7

    The authorities of University of Ibadan has slated a meeting with parents and others for June 7 to seek a joint solution to the perennial problems plaguing the institution.

    The institution was closed last month after students protested for the third time over poor supply of water and electricity among others.

    A statement by the university’s registrar, Mr. Olujimi Olukoya, said the forum was aimed at discussing ways of finding a lasting solution to the crises in the institution.

    The meeting will hold at the Trenchard Hall by 11am.

    Olukoya said the meeting is expected to be an interactive session with the parents and others to resolve the issues surrounding  the closure of the school.

    The statement reads: “Following the recent developments that led to students being advised to vacate the campus, the management, Senate and Council of the University of Ibadan have at various levels been deliberating on ways to address this problem with a view to finding lasting solution and ensuring resumption as soon as possible.

    “Parents and other stakeholders in the UI project are cordially invited to this forum.

    “We specially covet your presence and valuable input at this important meeting.

    “Kindly note that students are yet to be recalled and as such, should still stay away from the campus.”