Lagos State Deputy Governor Dr Idiat Oluranti Adebuleujnn has praised retirees of the Office of Education Quality Assurance (OEQA), Ministry of Education for their commitment to improving quality of education in public and private schools while in service.
This was disclosed by the Chairman of the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (LSUBEB), Dr Ganiu Sopeyin, who represented Dr Adebule at the end-of-year party and retirement celebration organised by the OEQA to appreciate the retirees and reward exemplary officers of the agency.
Adebule praised the retirees for setting the pace. She also lauded the awardees for exemplary discharge of their primary assignment and encouraged them not to rest on their oars.
The Chairman, Lagos State House Committee on Education, Mr Lanre Ogunyemi who graced the occasion, showered encomiums on the workers – both retiring and serving.
“To you officers who have retired, be assured that your work will continue to speak for you while for you the awardees, the upper rung of the ladder is where you are destined in your career,” he said.
In appraising the retired workers and the awardees, the Director General, OEQA, Mrs Ronke Soyombo, thanked them for their contributions to the growth of the department.
“Since inception, the collective, determined and committed efforts of the Lagos State Quality Assurance officers and evaluators had helped improve the quality and standard of the educational system below tertiary level in state,” she said.
She said the Whole School Evaluation (WSE) exercise, a statutory responsibility of the agency, had become a consistent exercise that helped schools to improve.
“It is heartwarming that schools across the state graded fair and poor are now being graded good and very good due to OEQA’s intervention in both public and private schools resulting to improved learners performance’.
“Since the beginning of the exercise, the quality and standard of teaching, security around schools, learning environment, safeguarding and child protection, checkmating of examination malpractices, subject accreditations, admission racketeering and observation of open day activities across schools in the state six education districts has improved tremendously,” she said.
Mrs Soyombo listed other achievements as: training of evaluating officers on Education Management Information System (EMIS), training of Head Teachers of Public primary and secondary schools and proffering amicable solutions to matters affecting learners and staff of educational institutions.
This year, in line with its projection and development plan, she said the OEQA would pursue new strategies in intervention practice with the aim of improving learning outcomes in schools, training of evaluators for improved performance and advocacy.
The highpoint of the occasion was the presentation of gifts to the retirees and others.
Ogunyemi also presented cash gift to the best evaluators, male and female categories and the best staff.
Tag: quality assurance
-
Quality Assurance honours retirees, others
-
Quality assurance workers, others get training
Quality Assurance officers, education supervisors, head teachers, special teachers and others are expected to hit the ground running when schools resume after the Yuletide, thanks to the training organised by the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).
The first of the trainings held at the VicJames Apartments, FESTAC Town, were for quality assurance evaluators in the 20 Local Government Education Authorities (LGEAs).
It exposed the evaluators to things they need to know when quality assuring schools.These include: noting whether classrooms are crowded; lessons are repeated; schools have internal monitoring team; how curriculum activities are carried out, among others.
They were also told to imbibe the code of conduct for evaluators as professionals. By internalising core values such as integrity, quality service, and accountability, the evaluators were told they would do their jobs better.They were also warned against collecting gratification, dressing inappropriately, and being intolerant.
UBEC Executive Secretary, Dr Dikko Suleiman, represented by Mr Olusegun Olujimi, the Southwest Coordinator of UBEC, praised the board for setting aside at least N10 million out its Teacher Professional Development (TPD) funds to retool quality assurance officers.
He expressed confidence that the training would improve quality education in the state.
“There is no doubt that the outcome of this workshop would strengthen and improve the capacity of the Quality Assurance Officers for better and more effective performance of their statutory functions,” he said.
Lagos SUBEB Chairman, Dr Ganiyu Sopeyin, said the board begun investing in quality assurance since 2009 in collaboration with the Education Sector Support Programme in Nigeria (ESSPIN).
He urged the participants to use what they learnt during the training.
“The success of the training will be determined by the extent to which you are able to apply this in improving learning outcomes, most importantly in examinations such as the placement test and the basic education certificate examination,” he said.
At another training for teachers, head teachers and directors of special schools and inclusive units, which lasted for three days, Dr Sopeyin said it would help the participants understand children living with disabilities and facilitate the practice of inclusive education in the state.
He said: “For inclusive education to work in our schools, we need the commitment of our head teachers and teachers generally who are the actual implementers of the policy. Hence this workshop is the needed tonic for all of us in the training of children with special needs to learn various strategies geared towards a realistic and productive inclusive education.”
Sopeyin, who was once a special needs teacher at Wesley School, Surulere, stressed the need for special teachers in the five special schools and 31 inclusive primary schools in the state, to help special children cope in the society, rather than separate them.
The three-day training featured seven papers, which covered the theme: ‘Understanding inclusive education.’
The facilitator, Dr Ademola Danmole, managing partner at a capacity training consulting firm, Kingsworth Consult, called for the need to revise the curriculum to suit special needs children.
He said: “They are using curriculum for normal kids for special kids, which should not be. All of that needs to change. So we must start from imparting knowledge into trainers in that sector. We need an improvement on where we are and how to gain skills necessary for imparting knowledge; let them be aware of the different disabilities so that they would understand how to handle each child.”
Sharing his experience in teaching special needs children, one of the participants, Dr Owoade Adeleke, who coordinates the inclusive education at Ojuwoye Community Primary School, Mushin, advised his colleagues to be patient and show love in their work with them.
-
Quality assurance workers, others get training
Quality Assurance officers, education supervisors, head teachers, special teachers and others are expected to hit the ground running when schools resume after the Yuletide, thanks to the training organised by the Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) and the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC).
The first of the trainings held at the VicJames Apartments, FESTAC Town, were for quality assurance evaluators in the 20 Local Government Education Authorities (LGEAs).
It exposed the evaluators to things they need to know when quality assuring schools.These include: noting whether classrooms are crowded; lessons are repeated; schools have internal monitoring team; how curriculum activities are carried out, among others.
They were also told to imbibe the code of conduct for evaluators as professionals. By internalising core values such as integrity, quality service, and accountability, the evaluators were told they would do their jobs better.They were also warned against collecting gratification, dressing inappropriately, and being intolerant.
UBEC Executive Secretary, Dr Dikko Suleiman, represented by Mr Olusegun Olujimi, the Southwest Coordinator of UBEC, praised the board for setting aside at least N10 million out its Teacher Professional Development (TPD) funds to retool quality assurance officers.
He expressed confidence that the training would improve quality education in the state.
“There is no doubt that the outcome of this workshop would strengthen and improve the capacity of the Quality Assurance Officers for better and more effective performance of their statutory functions,” he said.
Lagos SUBEB Chairman, Dr Ganiyu Sopeyin, said the board begun investing in quality assurance since 2009 in collaboration with the Education Sector Support Programme in Nigeria (ESSPIN).
He urged the participants to use what they learnt during the training.
“The success of the training will be determined by the extent to which you are able to apply this in improving learning outcomes, most importantly in examinations such as the placement test and the basic education certificate examination,” he said.
At another training for teachers, head teachers and directors of special schools and inclusive units, which lasted for three days, Dr Sopeyin said it would help the participants understand children living with disabilities and facilitate the practice of inclusive education in the state.
He said: “For inclusive education to work in our schools, we need the commitment of our head teachers and teachers generally who are the actual implementers of the policy. Hence this workshop is the needed tonic for all of us in the training of children with special needs to learn various strategies geared towards a realistic and productive inclusive education.”
Sopeyin, who was once a special needs teacher at Wesley School, Surulere, stressed the need for special teachers in the five special schools and 31 inclusive primary schools in the state, to help special children cope in the society, rather than separate them.
The three-day training featured seven papers, which covered the theme: ‘Understanding inclusive education.’
The facilitator, Dr Ademola Danmole, managing partner at a capacity training consulting firm, Kingsworth Consult, called for the need to revise the curriculum to suit special needs children.
He said: “They are using curriculum for normal kids for special kids, which should not be. All of that needs to change. So we must start from imparting knowledge into trainers in that sector. We need an improvement on where we are and how to gain skills necessary for imparting knowledge; let them be aware of the different disabilities so that they would understand how to handle each child.”
Sharing his experience in teaching special needs children, one of the participants, Dr Owoade Adeleke, who coordinates the inclusive education at Ojuwoye Community Primary School, Mushin, advised his colleagues to be patient and show love in their work with them.
-
New Quality Assurance instrument for Lagos schools
The recent reorganisation of the Lagos State Ministry of Education that birthed the Office of Education Quality Assurance (QA) has been greeted with enthusiasm by stakeholders.
The director-general of the newly-created office, Mrs Ronke Soyombo, met with about 40 participants selected from the unions, professional associations, school owners’ associations and QA officers at the Education Resource Centre, Ojodu, Lagos, last Monday to brainstorm on the instrument to be used for evaluating schools.
Mrs Soyombo said the sensitization workshop was oganised so stakeholders could contribute to the evaluation schedule for schools will know what would be assessed in the areas of leadership and management, achievement and standards, behaviour and safety, as well as teaching and learning.
“By the time we start publishing the instrument, it is not a resource that we have prepared on our own. And we followed the Federal Government instrument, because it is the Federal Government that has done for all education schools. But what we have done is to review and revamp it to suit the needs of Lagos State, and that is what we have called stakeholders,” she said.
Mrs Soyombo added that schools would be graded after the assessment, which would help categorise them.
“If it is properly done in different schools, if a school has come out as outstanding, we would be able to actually give you outstanding award. So, we are going to be grading schools. That is another development that is coming to education. It is going to be wow because our vision is to strive for excellence; to make all schools in Lagos State to actually be excellent schools,” she said.
Many of the participants are also optimistic about the new initiative.
Mrs Omotunde Olayinka Lawson, President, All Nigerian Confederation of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS), Lagos, said it would ultimately improve schools
“Nothing could have been better than this. I see it as a way of better improving the quality and the standard of teaching and learning process in the schools for better and greater outcomes; for greater efficiency on the part of the school managers and teachers; for improvement on the attitude and behaviour of students; to engage services of all stakeholders; so at the end of the day, you have improved performance both for teachers, heads of schools; and the students,” she said.
Mrs Mosun Owo-Odunsi, Proprietress of Amville School, Ilupeju, said it should soon become the national standard.
“Definitely, it can work; and it should work. It is the only way forward for the nation. And since it is starting up in Lagos State, I am sure other states will latch on to this,” she said.
Mrs Oyindamola Shomola, who represented Soms Creative and Educational consultancy and Christ Redeemers Schools movement, the umbrella body of schools owned by the Redeemed Christian Church of God, said the instrument would teach many administrators about how to run schools.
She said: “We have a lot of educationists, a lot of schools that have no clue concerning the major practice of quality assurance. So I believe that what has been done here, bringing in stakeholders to have an input and to even have more understanding about what it means, for example, leadership and management, I feel that for those who have come today would know that it goes beyond just seeing the one in authority, sitting in the office. It is more about sharing ideas, delegating authority and backing it up and delegating responsibilities. Also about standards, a lot has been learnt.”
-
Quality Assurance buzz in Lagos State
The excitement that the new office of Quality Assurance is generating in Lagos State is infectious. School owners, teachers, principals, and quality assurance experts are optimistic about the positive effect it would have on both public and private primary and secondary schools in the state.
The new QA template promises to revolutionalise what school inspection is all about. Rather than wait for inspectors, now called QA officers, to come and expose problems in an overbearing manner that encourages window dressing, schools are meant to do a self-assessment of their facilities, practices, processes and others before they receive the visitors. Through the assessment, they know where they stand and can take measures to improve. The QA officers are only to validate what the schools have assessed and proffer solutions on what should be done to resolve issues they may have.
If this is implemented properly, the Director-General of the Quality Assurance office says the assessments would lead to the grading of schools, which would be a welcome development. It would help parents to know what to consider while choosing schools so that they do not end up being victimized by high-fee collecting schools that lack substance.
I think the National Universities Commission (NUC) and other accreditation/regulatory agencies need to learn from the Lagos QA system. We have heard too many stories of schools renting equipment and workers for accreditation purposes only. After the exercise is over, they return the items and continue operating in poor environments that fail to produce good quality graduates. Tertiary institutions should be made to assess themselves – and be supported by the regulators to meet the desired standard – and not to put up a show.
-
Varsity holds seminar on quality assurance
Authorities of Salem University have organised a conference with the theme: Improvement of Teaching and Learning in Nigerian Universities for members of academic staff.
The management said the objective of the seminar was to equip academic staff with the appropriate skills to provide quality teaching to their students, help the staff to acquire new knowledge and skills and train them on the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for teaching.
The event was attended by principal officers of the university.
In his address, the Director of Quality Assurance, Dr Sunday Okpanachi, said there was a global concern about the sufficiency welfare, input and output of teachers.
He stated that the making of a successful lecturer or teacher goes beyond the mastery of the subjects but also includes the delivery skills as well as the creation a suitable learning atmosphere for learning. .
In his opening remarks, the Vice- Chancellor, Prof Joseph Fuwape, noted that the theme of the seminar was aimed at exploring the role of teaching techniques in the improvement of teaching skills to enhance the capacity of lecturers. He noted that for any organisation to successfully drive its vision, it was important to build the capacity of the workforce.
Prof Fuwape noted that most lecturers did not have formal skills in teaching, a situation which, he said, made most of them to adopt the old system of teaching. He said the seminar was organised to improve the teaching skills of lecturers.
In his presentation entitled: “Preparing for a new session as a lecturer in Salem University”, Dr D.J. Omale said lecturers needed to create opportunity for students to apply their knowledge to solve practical problems. He explained that demonstration in the classroom could raise student’s curiosity while reinforcing memory retention. He added that at the beginning of every course, students must be made to know the purpose of the subject and what is expected of them.
Dr Omale encouraged the need for group assignment and team building activities, saying that students got more excited about a task when working as a team. Through group discussions, he said, students could generate fresh ideas, which could enhance their performance.
He affirmed that oral presentation in class also helped students to improve their communication skills. Dr Omale noted that contemporary lecturers are encouraged to use the didactic or inclusive pedagogy method rather than the orthodox pedagogical method.
He encouraged lecturers to use multi media lecture aid such as Power Point, saying it would enable the students to easily grasp spellings and pronunciation of words.
In a lecture ebtitled: Understanding students for effective learning, Dr D.O. Oluwade said students had different levels of motivation, attitudes about teaching and learning, different responses to specific classroom environments and instructional practices, stating that the more instructors understand the differences, the better chance they had at meeting the diverse learning needs of their students.
She noted that active learning could be best promoted in a safe environment supported by the teacher in which expectation and positive relationship were fostered, adding that teacher should motivate students and nurture their desire to learn.
She recommended that teachers should give examples as much as possible when teaching courses that deal with things that are not common to everybody.
“Teachers should recognise the differences among students so as to know the appropriate teaching style that meets the needs of student and should exercise patience with slow learners,” she stated.
Speaking on The use of ICT to enhance learning experience, M. K. Aregbesola said that the use of ICT in teaching is a strong part of the Transformational Academic Revolution (TAR) agenda of Salem University.
He said students learn more in classes in which they receive computer-based instruction.