The Nation Newspaper

Tag: teachers

  • Lagos to address teachers’ shortfall

    Lagos to address teachers’ shortfall

    THE Lagos State government has assured the 5,436 volunteer teachers deployed in the state under the Federal Government’s N-Power job creation programme, that they would be well rewarded if they do well at the end of their two-year service.

    Deputy Governor, Idiat Oluranti Adebule, said the state had a way of monitoring and evaluating teachers’ performance, noting that they will also be entitled to awards and other perks like their counterparts, who are permanently on the government payroll.

    Adebule , who  spoke during a workshop organised by the state for the new teachers at the Blue Roof, Ikeja Lagos, recalled how some of them staged a protest at the Lagos State House of Assembly in January, because of the delay in their deployment.

    She said: “I recall that some of you protested because you thought we were not ready to deploy you. We were ready as government, but we must ensure proper things are put in place.

    “We know you are not going to deal with papers, but human beings. We also know that majority of you are not trained teachers. Therefore, you should know what is expected of you; how you relate with your new assignment as well as the dos and don’ts of this profession,” she said.

    According to her, the state has employed 2,300 teachers over the last two years to enhance teacher-pupil ratio. With the injection of additional 5,436 volunteer teachers, Adebule is optimistic that teachers’ shortfall would further be addressed.

    “You all stand a chance of being rewarded if you are exemplary. In the same vein, the state will not hesitate to deal decisively with those of you who choose to be unruly, disobedient and lawless,” she warned.

    For those who will find themselves in the rural areas of the state, Adebule urged them to put themselves in the shoes of pupils of such communities, adding that their services will be better appreciated there.

    Government, she said, would deploy some of them to primary and junior secondary schools for their primary assignment. Nonetheless, Adebule warned that the deployment does not confer on them authority; rather it is for them to contribute their quota to the development of education in the state.

    Earlier, the immediate past Director-General, Public Service Staff Development Centre, Mrs Olubunmi Fabanwo, described teaching as one of the oldest professions in the world.

    Speaking on the topic: “My teacher; My role model”, Fabanwo recalled that prominent individuals such as Jesus Christ and Prophet Muhammed, were once great teachers, whose works are still read till date.

    She said teachers not only need to be knowledgeable, but must be able to impart same on learners.

    Fabanwo identified integrity, respect, care, ability, and experience among others, as virtues teachers must imbibe to be on top of their game.

    Going down memory lane, a Permanent Secretary in the state, Mrs Folashade Ogunnaike, said Lagos, which is celebrating her 50th anniversary, was established by the military government in 1967 and the word IBILE was coined to represent the five divisions (Ikorodu, Badagry, Ikeja Lagos Island, Epe) of the state.

    The reason for her address, she said, was to acquaint the new teachers, many of who are visiting Lagos, of the state’s geography.

    She implored them to show commitment, adding that those, who would be deployed in challenging terrains such as riverine communities, should not see it as suffering, but a determination to make such places better during their stay.

  • ‘We need 21st century teachers for 21 century children’

    ‘We need 21st century teachers for 21 century children’

    Principal Consultant of Edumark Consult, an education solution provider firm Mrs Yinka Ogunde,  has said Nigeria needs to improve on her method of passing knowledge to the child 21st century through training and retraining of teachers.

    Ogunde expressed the fear that an average Nigerian child, nay the world is ‘adventurous and curious’, while many of them ‘know what their teachers don’t’. What remains the only gap is availability of competent teachers that will consolidate on those new-found traits

    Ogunde spoke during a briefing at the firm’s Surulere, Lagos office last week to announce the 9th edition of the Total School Support Seminar and Exhibition (TOSSE). Ogunde, who is also the convener of TOSSE, said: “What we have today is a generation of curious children. The world today breeds children who are mentally and emotionally advanced even at a much younger age. Many of them are technology-savvy and know more than us their parents as well as their teachers.

    “Unfortunately, the nation is not training teachers that will address the new traits.”

    She described TOSSE as a value-driven educational event which began nine years ago with 30 exhibitors and 500 educators. She is nonetheless happy that TOSSE has grown in leaps and bounds

    Like in previous editions, Ogunde said the two day event which would hold at Ten Degrees Event Centre Oregun, Lagos, between June 1and 2, would feature over 100 seminars by seasoned educationists, in addition to 18 free train-the trainer seminars.  According to her, TOSSE has been strategically planned to cover a wide range of topics based on recent happenings in the sector.

    “There are organisations that have simplified solutions and processes for the sector and packaged them into products. The thought behind this is, if you plan to start a great school from scratch or you see that your school needs to be reformed, you can walk into TOSSE and get everything you need from books to computers, laboratory equipment, learning aids, special education solutions and equipment, curriculum, uniforms, stationery and every other thing,” she added.

    According to her, some of the topics to be deliberated upon would include:  ‘The Art of being a brilliant teache; Quality Assurance in Education models; and Maximising the early years for a successful future.

    Others include: ‘Methods and metrics that work; Strategies for innovative curriculum delivery better than Google; Creating processes for (Sexual) abuse prevention; Understanding taxation for private schools in Nigeria; and  Learning through travel: Enhancing students’ learning experience.

    Though government is not partnering with her, Ogunde hoped government could mobilise  their key officers to the venue.

    “I wished government would bring in their key officers to come and see, and learn because when you expose someone’s’ mind you get the better part of the job done.

    “We are not asking them to bring money; but when you allow them listen to experienced people within and outside Nigeria, it automatically opens their mind to things around them. Its all about learning and inspiring people to be better teachers and administrators, “she said.

  • Education standard: Government tasked on teachers’ salaries, welfare

    Education standard: Government tasked on teachers’ salaries, welfare

    The Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) has tasked states government to prioritise teachers’ salaries and welfare to improve the standard of education in the country.

    Prof. Josiah Ajiboye, TRCN Registrar, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) against the backdrop of the Labour Day Celebration in Abuja on Sunday.

    Cue-in audio

    “Teachers welfare should be paramount to our various governments.

    “We want our governors to please wake up; the education of our children is important; the future of the country is in the hands of these teachers; when they are not well taken care of, they cannot put in their best.

    “If we want the best from these teachers; we want to implore the various states governments in Nigeria to please take the issue of teachers’ salary as number one.

    “Let them pay them very well, let them be well remunerated.

    “The teacher is the nation builder; they teach, others learn and so they must be well taken care of.

    “We are advocating at the level of TRCN, as professional teachers, these teachers must be respected, their welfare must be taken care of by the various government and we must value them appropriately.

    “Let us respect them; let us appreciate their work by giving them what is due to them.

    “Many teachers who have done great things in the past are not even being recognised.

    “We want a situation where they will recognise teachers at the Labour Day celebration so that we will encourage those who are in that profession.’’

    Cue-out audio

    Ajiboye called on all state governments to ensure the payment of outstanding salaries of teachers in their states.

    He, however, commended the Federal Government for putting in place measures to ensure that the quality of teaching and teachers in the country was improved.

  • Lagos trains head teachers on ‘assessment scores’

    Head teachers of public primary schools in Lagos State were given tips on how to effectively collate pupils’ assessment scores.

    The seminar themed: ‘Method of collating and presenting accurate and reliable continuous assessment scores (CAS)’, was organised by the state Ministry of Education.

    Speaking at the event held at Government Girls College, Ipaja, Permanent Secretary Ministry of Education Adeshina Odeyemi, said improper collating of scores, prevents pupils from securing admission into secondary schools.

    “We want to ensure that head teachers have the grasp of what they need to know about CAS. It forms part of what we will use in assessing pupils. Once there is no error in the CAS, we administer Common Entrance for the pupils. We will collate the result and CAS and use this to place them in secondary schools,“ he said.

    Urging participants to replicate what they would learn in their various schools, Odeyemi noted that there had been some discrepancies in the past, which have not yielded effective collation of the scores, hence the seminar.

    The Director, Lagos State Examination Board, Hassan Oluwafemi said CAS must measure the three domain of education- the cognitive, affective and psychomotor.

    Aside ability to collate scores, Oluwafemi was hopeful the exercise would enlighten participants’ enhancement of the standard of assessment in terms of pupils’ ability. Also participants would be able to identify underperforming pupils which will help them strategies teaching and learning procedures to assist them, Oluwafemi added.

    A participant, Mr Fakunle Olutunbi of Nigeria Navy Primary School, Ojo, suggested that the training should be done annually to continuously equip teachers with up-to-date knowledge.

     

  • Tough lesson for Plateau teachers

    Tough lesson for Plateau teachers

    The teachers were sober when they heard the verdict. Primary school pupils were not speaking well, and it was because they were not being taught well.

    Chairman of the Plateau State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) Professor Sule Matthew did not mince words when he addressed Plateau State teachers at the Olusegun Obasanjo Model School, Jos, the state capital.

    “The federal government is not pleased with the quality of children coming out of our primary schools all over the country,” he said to the teachers who were in the middle of a training programme. “It is not peculiar to Plateau State, and if the foundation at the primary level of education is not strong, such pupil will find the secondary school level difficult, and often lead to school dropouts.

    “Government has observed that the reading habit of children of public school nowadays is poor, there is the need to do something, and that something is the ongoing training for our primary schools teachers. It is hoped that after this training, these teachers will be equipped with [sufficient knowledge and skills] to teach our children how to read and speak English and solve mathematics with ease.”

    Speaking further, Prof Sule said, “This training is an intervention by Federal Government to get it right from the basic level. The foundation has to be on sound footing, we can’t continue to allow poor quality teaching…We the current leaders owe our children the best education required, if not, prosperity will not forgive us. So the target of this special training for teachers is our primary school children.”

    A consultancy firm, Universal Learning Solution, took charge of the training in collaboration with Jolly Learning Limited of United Kingdom.

  • Osun pupils, teachers laud volunteer corps scheme

    Public secondary school pupils in Osun State have lauded the Volunteer Corps Tutoring programme, a private intervention to help less privileged pupils improve through extra lessons.

    The programme aims at preparing SS3 pupils adequately for public examinations such as the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) conducted by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) and the National Examination Council (NECO), as well as the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) conducted by the JAMB.

    The programme which features intensive weekend (Friday-Sunday) coaching began in Osun on December 10, last year, though it has existed in Lagos for 25 years.

    The pupils and volunteer teachers are fed meals during the classes to avoid distraction due to hunger and tiredness on the Saturdays.

    The pupils are being taught Mathematics and English and were given work books on both subjects that contain past questions as well as notebooks.

    Teachers got a manual; marking scheme of WAEC standard.

    State coordinator of the programme, Mrs Ibiyemi Ifaturoti, said there are scholarships available for those who excel in the examination.

    She visited some centres where the classes hold in various schools in the Ife/Ilesa zone recently, where pupils and teachers made positive comments about the scheme.

    Ozomue Mathew of School of Science, Ondo Road, described the intervention “as a nice project helping us. It will really be effective in eradicating mass failure in schools; we thank the organisers.”

    Abosede Fadare of St. Margaret’s High School, Ilesa, has her eyes on the scholarship.

    “(I will) try to be among the best so I can be one of those who will get the scholarship,” she said.

    Maths teacher, Mr Segun Lawrence Omisakin, said the programme was yielding fruits.

    “The project is fine and the students are responding well. I have no qualms teaching for free on the weekends I am supposed to be resting but it is God that rewards.  No amount of money can ever be enough,” he said.

    Mrs Abimbola Awofisayo, also a Maths teacher at the School of Science, Ondo Road, advised the organisers to start earlier with the next set.

    “It is a really nice programme but the time for preparation is short. I’ll advise the organisers to let’s start from maybe SS2 so we can catch them young. I have done a lot of volunteering in the past and my joy will be to meet the students in future when they have become successful,” she said.

    Hamza Musa, a youth corps member serving at C&S Middle School, Ilesa, but who teaches maths on weekends at St. Margaret’s High School, Ilesa, said participating in the programme was fulfilling.

    “I am usually free at weekends and decided to engage myself by coming here to teach. I’m enjoying imparting knowledge to the younger students and I’m happy they are responding well,” he said.

    Disclosing the reason for the intervention, Mrs Ifaturoti, said the poor performance of public schools pupils in the last WASSCE was just one of the motives for the initiative.

    “It is one of the motivations but it is really high time that we started impacting the lives of children in other places apart from Lagos. Let’s just say the time was just ripe” she said.

    The coordinator, who disclosed that convincing the teachers to work free on weekends,  was not easy  however acknowledged the roles played by the three zonal coordinators, Alhaji ‘Lekan Salami, Deaconess Adeola Akanji and Pastor Ayodele Obadire  in getting the programme started.

    She also thanked the Osun State governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola for approving the initiative.

     

  • Educationist seeks more training for teachers

    An educationist, Dr Raheem Adebayo Issah, has identified inadequate human capacity development as one of the key factors affecting education at the basic level.

    Issah spoke briefly after the final stage of the inter-secondary schools quiz competition organised and sponsored by his school – Nana Aisha Memorial Schools – in Ilorin.

    Seven of the 20 participating schools featured as finalists. They include: Zarat Model College; Omega College; and Government Day Secondary School, all in Ilorin.

    Other schools in Ilorin were: Ajoshe Model College; Government Day Secondary School; Ilorin Community High School; and Nana Aisha Memorial Secondary School. They all competed in Mathematics, English Language, Current Affairs, Economics and Basic Sciences.

    Issah, who compared the country’s  education system with the western world, bemoaned Nigeria’s emphasis on paper qualification, unlike the Western system which also priotises technical and vocational education. To add salt to injury, training of teachers is also not taken seriously, Issah further lamented.

    This development, according to him, explains why half-baked students flood secondary schools and, as misfits, are pushed into tertiary education where such students continue to seek fraudulent means of passing examination and graduating.

    Issah, who is also a medical practitioner, noted that while many public schools care less about quality services, many private schools that took off with good intentions , became disoriented along the line.

    “I am using this opportunity to call on government at both state and federal levels to renew the culture of organising regular capacity building programmes for teachers from primary up to tertiary institutions. This, I believe, will augment their skills and knowledge for better performance,” Issah pleaded.

    He noted that his school organised the competition to encourage healthy competition among the pupils

    Issah admonished participants to devote more time to their studies, adding that this is the only way to prepare themselves for leadership role in future.

    At the end of the contest, Nana Aisha Memorial Secondary School emerged the overall winner, followed by Omega College. They were rewarded.

  • Rotary honours nine teachers

    NINE teachers in Owonrosoki, Lagos have bagged the Best Teachers of the Year award by the Rotary Club of Gbagada South.

    Mrs Morenike Oguntake, a Religious Studies teacher, received the award at Eva Adelaja Girls Junior Secondary School while Mr Moses Adesola Ariyo, Biology teacher, was selected at Eva Girls Senior Secondary School emerged.

    At Muslim Junior College, it was a Mathematics teacher, Mrs Racheal Oladapo, while at Muslim Senior College, Mr Olurotimi Ogundijo, a Commerce teacher got the award.

    At the Owonrosoki Schools Complex, the teachers were: Mrs Victoria Moroyeke Oyesanmi of Owonrosoki Primary School; Mrs Anthonia Ifeoma Okeke of Local Government Nursery and Primary School; Mrs Kehinde Adeleke Oyetola of Ayeroju Nursery and Primary School; Mrs Joy Ngozi Ikebukwu of Mosafejo Nursery and Primary School; and Mrs Janet Yemisi Akinluyi of Muslim Mission Nursery and Primary School.

    The club’s President, Mr Babatunde Jeje, said teachers should be recognised because of the crucial role they play in moulding young ones

    “I have special interest in teachers. They are moral builders. I thank you for nurturing and preparing us for the future. Teachers are doing good to the world just like Rotary is doing with its humanitarian services. This school complex (Oworonshoki) has been adopted by us. We will come back.” He added that his father was a teacher.

    The club also donated eight chalk boards each to Eva Adelaja Girls Junior and Senior Secondary Schools and the Muslim Junior and Senior colleges.

    Principal, Eva Adelaja Girls Junior Secondary School Mrs Abiodun Ibironke and her counterpart at Eva Girls Senior Secondary School Mrs Tofade Tomilola praised Rotary for the gesture.

    Mrs Tomilola was also full of praise for Ariyo, winner in her school, for his commitment to duty and being IT complaint.

    ”I was posted here last August. I observed that Ariyo had been active. He has a good mastery of his subject. We are proud of him,” she said.

     

  • Taraba teachers’ summit to improve education

    Worried by the poor output of schools, the senator representing Southern Taraba in the National Assembly, Emmanuel Bwacha, has organised a summit for public and private secondary school teachers in the state to share ideas and proffer solution.

    Flagging the event in Wukari at the weekend, Senator Bwacha said with Taraba now having three universities and many polytechnics and colleges of education, there was need to prepare qualified candidates for these institutions.

    Bwacha noted with concern, “the falling standard of education  in Nigeria,” adding that the situation was worse in Taraba State where graduates cannot compete favourably with their mates elsewhere.

    He attributed the problem to the emphasis placed on paper qualification rather than skills acquisition.

    “I met a lawyer and was wondering how he can go to court and win a legal case –he couldn’t defend his LLB.

    “If you have eight credits in your SSCE, and you pass Government, for example, you should be able to answer elementary questions on the three arms of government.

    “We shall begin to look at areas of legislation; we shall check whether that certificate you are holding is truly yours; if not yours, we shall ask you to give way for the qualified person –who can defend his certificate.

    “We are in a dilemma and this summit will assist the government in no small measure in fixing the problem,” Bwacha said.

    According to the convener, Emmanuel Ba’aku Attah, the summit aimed specifically at “improving performance in post primary school external examinations, such as WASSCE, NECO, NABTEB and the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in the southern district of Taraba.”

    Six papers were presented by scholarly resource persons, mostly university lecturers.

    They agreed that the teacher plays a crucial role in driving education to the next level and should be blamed for failures.

    In his paper on “Ethical Standards and Professionalism in Teaching: The Nexus,” Dr. Amuche Chris recommended among other things, that entry into the teaching profession be regulated by the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN); all unethical behaviours from teachers be discouraged; and government should train teachers regularly.

    On his part, Dr. Solomon Iyekekpolor, said there must be an “attitudinal change” by all the stakeholders: proprietors, teachers, and government educational authorities, managers of secondary schools, students and parents.

    “A doctor makes a mistake and a patient dies; an engineer makes a mistake and a bridge or building collapses; but a teacher makes a mistake and a whole generation is put in danger.

    “Their (teachers) pay is low and not given as and when due. The teachers’ reward may be in heaven as often said, but he needs a living allowance down here to survive to discharge his responsibilities. But teachers also, more often than not, hide under various guises to perpetrate truancy and many forms of vices contrary to the ethics of the teaching profession. The attitude must change.”

    Another resource person, Simon Bala Manga, stressed the importance of guidance and counseling as it affects performance of secondary school pupils.

    He said: “Much damage has been done to our children who graduate from schools without proper direction. A large number of secondary school graduates seeking admission into our universities have been disappointed because they were not guided and counseled.”

    Other papers were presented on ‘The Role of Proprietors and the Managers of Secondary Schools Towards Quality Assurance’ and ‘Result Oriented Management of Post Primary Educational Institutions,’ by Ige John Sayo.

  • Foundation mentors teachers

    FundaWazi Foundation, a non-governmental organ-isation spearheading the welfare of children, will on Friday, March 10 host the maiden edition of Teachers Exploring through Mentorship (T.E.M).

    The mentoring programme, which is aimed at supporting and guiding teachers, school owners and care givers in their career, enhancing teaching practice and student learning; finance and other professional goals, as well as creating a plan towards achieving them will hold at the Multipurpose Hall, The Fountain of Life Church, 12 Industrial Estate Road, Ilupeju Lagos. Time is 10.00 am.

    The co-coordinator the mentoring programme, Mrs Abisola Soneye, said it  is borne out of the passion to restore mentorship, which is a missing puzzle, in the teaching profession in schools. She noted that the programme would be an important mechanism for teachers to build a high-performing and competent career which will guarantee the longevity of schools.

    The event, she said, will also provide career development opportunities as well as in capacity building and the ability to further duplicate the mentorship attitude in their profession and way of life generally.

    Professionals from leading sectors and educational institutions will be handling the programme. They include: Mrs Nomthi Odukoya, (Founder, Funda Wazi Foundation, educationist, life coach and writer); Mrs Lai Koiki (Executive Director Greensprings School Lagos, Nigeria); Mrs Olufunto Igun (Chief Executive Officer, Corona Schools Trust Council); Mr Olakunle Soriyan (Principal Transformation Strategist, Kunle Soriyan and Co); Mr Muktar Mohammed (Financial Analyst/Stock Broker); and Barrister Taiwo Akinlanmi (Principal, Taiwo Akinlanmi Academy).