The Nation Newspaper

Tag: teachers

  • Boko Haram kills seven students, two teachers

    Boko Haram kills seven students, two teachers

    •Churches burnt

    After about 10 months break, Boko Haram made a bloody return to Damaturu, the Yobe State capital at the weekend, attacking a school and killing nine people.

    The dead are seven pupils and two teachers of Government Day Secondary School.

    The attack, which took place on Sunday night, has forced the tightening of the curfew on the town. Yobe is one of the three states under a state of emergency declared by President Goodluck Jonathan last month.

    The others are Adamawa and Borno.

    The insurgents also attacked a military checkpoint around the Pilgrims Area of the town, injuring three soldiers, but two of the insurgents were killed during a counter attack by the military.

    Joint Task Force (JTF) spokesman Lt. Lazarus Eli, who confirmed the death toll, said three insurgents were captured. Some weapons including one AK47 riffle, one RPG bomb and 48 rounds of 7.62 (special) ammunition, among others, were recovered.

    The insurgents according to eyewitnesses gained entrance into the porous school and lunched attack on the students at about 9.30pm in their hostel.

    Mohammed Idi, one of the injured pupils who sustained gunshot injuries, told our correspondent at the Accident and Emergency Ward of the Gen. Sani Abacha Specialist Hospital, Damaturu that he was shot as he came out of the hostel while hearing gunshots.

    “We were sleeping in the hostel and, suddenly, we heard gunshots very close to the hostel. We got confused and many of us scattered. I immediately came out and saw one of the Boko Haram militants who started shooting at us.

    “I was shot in the leg and the bullet went through my bone. I fell down and tried to run, but I could not run because my leg was very stiff with pains. Somebody came and dragged me by the hand. I initially thought I was in the enemy’s care until I realised that it was one of our students trying to help me to escape,” Idi said.

    The school authority confirmed that nine people died from the attack.

    Our correspondent who visited the school observed that only final year students were there, writing their National Examinations Council (NECO) examinations. The others have fled from the school. One of the supervisors said three of the students killed were final year students.

    Dr. Salim Mohamed Umar said the state hospital had received 11 bodies and seven students with various gunshot injuries.

    One of the injured students said the insurgents tied the hands of one of the students who took them to the house of one of the teachers. Four people, including the teacher, were killed in that house.

    Dr. Umar said one of the dead students had some defensive injuries on his hands. He explained that all the students killed were either shot on the head or in the neck.

    The latest attack ended almost 10 months of relative peace in the state capital, Damaturu and other parts of the state.

    The situation compelled the state government to upgrade the curfew to 6pm to 6.00am, from 9pm to 7am.

    Some parts of the state capital, such as Potiskum Road, Ali Malami Estate, and Pilgrims, were locked down by men of the JTF during the search for the attackers.

    Also at the weekend, four churches were bombed and burned in attacks attributed to Boko Haram.

    Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama of Jos, the President of the Nigerian bishops’ conference, told the Fides news service that the army had moved in to the area in the northern Borno state, bringing a greater sense of security to the population, after the attacks on churches, which were followed by the looting of stored food and livestock.

    The raids were likely the work of Boko Haram units, in coordination with Islamist groups that have been ousted from neighboring Mali, the archbishop said. He called for a “regional approach” to the violence, in which authorities from Nigeria, Niger, and Mail would work together against the Islamic militants.

     

  • Teachers’ strike: We can’t pay beyond 15 percent, says Ogun

    Ogun State government has said it could only pay 15 percent of the Teachers Peculiar Allowance (TPA) in its public primary and secondary schools and not the 27.5 percent being demanded by them.

    The teachers under the aegis of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) had since last June 1 downed tools to protest the non- payment of the 27.5 percent TPA by the state government.

    But its rival, the Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools (ASUSS), declined participation in the strike, which would enter the third week tomorrow.

    ASUSS also proceeded to alert the police and the State Security Service(SSS) of the increasing intimidation and harassment of its members by NUT in a bid to forcibly drag ASUSS into joining the on – going strike.

    According to the state chairman of ASUSS, Comrade Tunde  Folarin, the decision by his members to stay off the strike called by NUT was reached at the end of its Central Working Committee after it agreed with the state government’s phase payment procedure, starting with the “payment 15 per cent by 1st of July.”

    The commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mr. Segun Odubela, told reporters at the weekend that though the government is negotiating with the teachers, it could not afford to pay the 27.5percent being demanded.

    He noted that the government was ready to pay the 15 percent to all teachers in the state irrespective of the union they belong.

    He said: “Concerning the NUT strike, I can assure you that we have been having negotiations with them and of course the government on our part has agreed to pay 15percent.

    “You know they are agitating for 27.5 but the government is prepared to pay 15percent and this of course has been communicated to them.”

    Folarin said the body had to notify the security agencies so that measures could be taken to avoid “fracas” in schools should the ASUSS found itself compelled to engage in self defence against intimidations by NUT officials.

    He urged the ASUSS members throughout the state to continue discharging their lawful business as they await the final consummation of the 25.7 peculiar allowances.

     

  • Teachers on more varsities: yes; no

    Teachers on more varsities: yes; no

    How can the problem of carrying capacity be addressed in universities? Is it by establishing more universities? Yes, say some teachers; no, say others, reports KOFOWOROLA BELO-OSAGIE.

    THE number of those seeking admission into universities yearly is staggering. No fewer than 1,735,720 candidates are seeking admission this year. But not up to half of them can be admitted. Why? Capacity problem. The universities have fewer spaces and so cannot take them all.

    The problem of carrying capacity has given rise to the clamour for more universities. But not all adacemic agree that the problem can be solved by establishing more universities. Even though the Federal Government established nine universities between 2011 and 2013 (three of which would start next year), and has announced plans to establish more mega universities, some academics and administrators are concerned that the coming of too many new universities would negatively affect existing ones; impinge on quality, and not actually help to solve the access problem.

    In interviews with The Nation, they identified problems that could arise from establishing more universities, including reducing the number of academics who are already being recycled by the existing universities; encouraging inbreeding, which would affect the quality of teaching and research; and using huge financial resources on starting the new universities without necessarily getting the desired results.

    Universities for the sake of it?

    As serious as the access problem seems to be, some academic argue that it is not enough reason for establishing a university. They say universities establishment should be in line with strategic plans aimed at meeting the country’s development needs and not politics.

    Renowned researcher, Prof Pai Obanya faults the government in this regard. He said in an interview that the government has to be scientific in the way that it establishes universities.

    “African governments are playing very dangerous politics with higher education by simply siting institutions instead of establishing them. For geographical, for political reasons, you just say you are starting a university. Starting a university and creating a university are not the same thing. Because if you are to create and establish universities, the calibre, the quality, the orientation of those who will run that university and those who will teach in that university, would determine what then happens. So, first solution is to be more scientific in the way we decide whether we are going to have universities or not; and ensure that what we have are really universities, not just in name but in reality,” he said.

    Former Vice-Chancellor of the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) Prof Olugbemiro Jegede, who is now the Secretary to the Kogi State Government, said despite Nigeria needing up to 250 universities to cater for its huge population of youths, the process must be based on deliberate policies to meet certain needs.

    He said: “It is true that we need more universities. Nigeria with 170 million people has very few universities – even at 129. By our calculation with that population, Nigeria should have nothing less than 250 universities. But it has to be planned; it is not overnight. You have to ask yourselves where you are going to get the money to start the infrastructure. Where are you going to get the people? How will you train these people? How about paying them? How about structuring the courses? What are our priorities? At the moment, Nigeria does not have, as far as I know, a prioritised list of the area that we need to help us develop to ‘x’ years.”

    With the aid of planning, Jegede said Nigeria can choose the kind of universities to establish such that they are able to help groom the right crop of professionals needed to grow various aspects of the economy.

    “Then you begin to think what other universities, what kind of universities what specialty universities do we need for the different areas. I do not have any problem if we say I am establishing university of rice and cassava. All they do is to research on cassava and rice because Nigeria is the largest producer of cassava in the world. Nigeria consumes the largest amount of rice,” he said.

    More universities, fewer lecturers

    Many academics are worried that the establishment of more universities would create another crisis in terms of teacher supply.

    According to the report of the Committee on Needs Assessment of Nigerian Public Universities presented by the Education Minister, Prof Ruqayyat Ahmed Rufa’i, to the National Economic Council (NEC) in November, last year, there are 37,504 teachers in public universities. Only 43 per cent of these teachers have Ph.Ds, the minimum qualification accepted by the National Universities Commission (NUC) for lecturers. Twenty-five per cent of them are part-time lecturers, working in more than two institutions. The report described the situation as a crisis of manpower in the University System.

    University administrators, who feel this crisis more know what it means to deal with not having enough teachers. Prof Arinola Sanya, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) of the University of Ibadan (UI), said many universities are using the same lecturers, which would further reduce when new ones are established.

    “I feel that what we have right now, if we properly manage, is adequate; because, unfortunately, we have a lot of mushroom universities, both private and public. We don’t have the capacity for university teachers. So it is the same teachers we are circulating and that will bring down quality,” she said.

    Describing the problem graphically, Jegede said if universities continue to recycle lecturers without paying attention to producing more, the quality of research output would greatly reduce.

    He said: “The human resources we have in Africa are either being depleted or being recycled. When you start recycling, you are doing inbreeding. And when you start embarking on inbreeding, you can never talk about research; you can never talk about excellence. Now let me give an example. Nigeria has probably a pool of about 300,000 university lecturers. As at three months ago, we had 126 universities. Now, we have 129 something universities. The same 300,000 lecturers are revolving round these universities. Nobody is talking about long-term planning; let us see how can we plan and get this (number) of university lecturers in five years time then we can establish more universities or make sure they are there.

    “So what we are doing now is that it is possible, literarily in Nigeria now, for somebody who graduated who probably is an Assistant lecturer with a Masters degree, to become a professor in five, six years. It is becoming possible because of unbridled, unplanned proliferation of universities for reasons other than academics; for reasons other than serious thinking.”

    Private or public, the problem of insufficient lecturers is the same, says Prof Timothy Jaiyeoba, Vice-Chancellor of Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo, which is owned by the Anglican Communion. Of about 200 teachers in his university, he said about 120 are full-time workers. He said the establishment of new universities, has a negative effect on existing ones.

    “Both public and private proprietors should stop for now. The Federal Government needs to rest from creating universities.Because each time you create a university it has effect on existing universities since the staffing will be taken from the existing pool. So, each time they create, it will also be that they are destabilising the universities. That is why there is need for adequate planning. They should base it on market studies that more universities are required rather than for political reasons alone,” he said.

    If new universities should not be established, what will be the fate of the teeming number of admission seekers leaving secondary schools yearly? Some academics suggest that the way out is the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) mode of education where students can enrol in universities and learn online rather than face-to-face. If more universities adopt ODL, Prof Olufemi Bamiro, the immediate past Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ibadan said the problem of access would become artificial. Through ODL, Bamiro said universities can admit much more than through the face-to-face mode.

    “We cannot solve the problem by brick and mortar, that is, creating more universities. Because first of all, the unit cost of all these new universities is so high. Why don’t we leverage on technology? Go into ODL. That was what I did in U.I. We realised that how do we help the country to solve the access problem? As at that time, UI had only 12,000 students. But when you look at the assets we used just for them, if you calculate it, you will be talking of almost millions to support one student. Fortunately for me, I had one Prof Francis Egbokhare, excellent guy. He was made the Director, Distance Learning. And he started. From 1,000 students that they had initially, they moved. And through the support of Mac Arthur Foundation, they grew it to 15,000.

    “You now look at it, face-to-face, we had only 12,000 students registered. In ODL, we had 16,000, which means in growing the ODL, the number of students involved in ODL are now more than face-to-face. But when you look at the cost, it is far less. Tell me how many universities we would have built if we were talking about brick and mortar that would take 16,000? The message is government should encourage existing universities to develop the two modes of delivery. As you are having your face-to-face, also be encouraging them to develop ODL.”

    Jegede agrees that ODL is the way out of the access problem, urging the Federal Government to fund NOUN and others to fully develop the ODL mode, and improve the communications infrastructure so people can learn wherever they are.

    “One other area people have not talked about is ODL. People can now sit in their homes and learn, and take their degrees. That way, you spend less on infrastructure. You even spend less on teaching but you spend a lot of money in making sure that the communications industry is so well laid that everybody can communicate; every body can learn – just like Singapore did. Singapore made sure that they piped fibre optics into every house. Give Open University N10 billion alone and it will take one million people,” he said.

    Some teachers kicked against the suggestion, saying it is not the solution to the problem.

    Vice-Chancellor, Federal University of Agriculture in Umudike, Abia State, Prof Hilary Udeoga said capacity building of lecturers should go along with the establishment of new varsities.

    “I am perfectly in agreement with the need to establish more universities. While we are thinking of establishing more universities, we should also think of capacity building in different areas of knowledge. For instance, what the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) is doing in Nigeria is quite commendable. They provide the funds for sending our graduates abroad and even locally; sponsoring the postgraduate programme. Other agencies should emulate TETFUND and that will go a long way to enable us address the lack of enough human resources to cater for the new universities that are being established,” he said.

    Prof Suleiman Kuranga, Director Academic Planning, University of Ilorin, says with proper monitoring, quality would not drop when new universities are established.

    “There should be no worry about it provided that our regulatory bodies are up to it. They set up a strict monitoring and evaluation because the population is increasing. The only thing is that we should have a basic minimum standard which must be strictly adhered to,” he said.

    Vice-Chancellor, Crawford University in Igbesa, Ogun State, Prof Samson Ayanlaja, advocates expansion of access through vocational training. “It may not be more universities, but more technical-oriented training centres. What happens to the 1.2 million candidates not admitted yearly? They have to be engaged in some type of vocational training that will give them skill so that they can get good jobs,” he said.

  • Why teachers matter

    I was recently invited to give a talk to some English students at a University on career prospects for them. Their first option should be teaching but I know it is the last option for many graduates. Even for some who read Education related courses, they would do anything to avoid taking a teaching appointment except they have no other choice.

    In listing my options at the lecture, I said l would like to start with the one I know they don’t like to hear about and asked the students  if they could name what it is and expectedly they all chorused ‘teaching’.

    At one stage or the other, we have all been taught by teachers and want good teachers to teach our children, but ironically not many graduates want to become teachers. Most parents, even teachers themselves dream that their children become Lawyers, Doctors, Engineers and some other choice professions for reasons not unconnected with the poor image of the teaching profession and the poor remunerations they earn.

    The on-going strike by members of the Nigeria Union of Teachers in nine states which have not paid the 27.5 per cent Teachers Enhanced Allowance, and the minimum wage of N18,000 is indicative of the contempt the affected states have for teachers.

    According to the National President of the NUT, Micheal Olukoya, “while some state governments, after much struggle, have come to terms with the provisions of the agreement, it is regrettable that 5 years after, nine states are still in their season of prevarications.”

    Considering the crucial role of teachers at all levels of education, teachers need to be adequately and promptly paid to ensure that they perform their duties. Unfortunately, teachers are one of the poorest paid professionals. The joke has always been that teachers have to wait till they make it to heaven to get whatever reward they are entitled to.

    It is indefensible that the nine states in question have taken this long to implement the demands of the teachers. All state governments always claim to be committed to improving the standards of education  but what this strike has shown is that they may well be paying lip service to whatever commitment they have or are not getting their priorities right on education.

    If some state governments have complied, there can be no justification for others not to do so if they appreciate the need to have well motivated teachers who will not be forced to resort to staying away from classroom to get what they deserve.

    For the affected state governments, their lukewarm response to the strike suggests that they don’t care for how long the strike continues. They probably would have taken the strike more seriously if some other workers in their states like civil servants and doctors were the ones on strike.

    Academic staffs of polytechnics nationwide have also been on strike without the federal and state governments seeming too bothered about their complaints. The strident pleas of the students who are the worst hit for an amicable resolution of the disagreement have fallen on deaf ears.

    We need to stop treating teachers as second rate professionals. But for teachers, many accomplished professionals, including the governors may not have attained whatever status they lay claim today.

    The defaulting states should pay up and not complicate the already sorry state of education in the country.

  • Prospective teachers urged to appreciate career

    Provost Topmost College of Education, Ipaja, Lagos Dr Mabel Odunayo has urged those going into the teaching profession to be proud of themselves and not see career as one for the not-do-wells in the society.

    Speaking at the matriculation of the newly admitted students who have just secured admission into the college’s Professional Diploma in Education(PDE) for the 2012/2013 academic year, Odunayo said today, the ‘chalk’ profession is more rewarding with teachers reaping them on earth and in the hereafter. And what fulfilled a teacher with natural calling for the job, she added, is the unquantifiable joy he or she derives seeing the students she once moulded succeed in future. “That is the fulfillment of every teacher; no one can place value on such joy,” she said.

    She therefore urged them to shun any act that can disturb the smooth running of their programmes in school. Congratulating the new students, Chairman of the college Governing Council, Mr Wale Odunayo, admonished them to see their matriculation as the beginning of their journey into professional teaching.

    “I want to assure you all that as you will be graduating in the next three years, you will be awarded with the Professional Diploma in Education (PDE) certificate that will qualify you as professional teachers that are duly certified,” he said.

    Administering the oath on the inductees, Registrar and Chief Executive Officer, of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) Prof Addison Wokocha said the council was established under Decree 31 of 1993 (now TRCN Act CapT3 of 2004) with a mandate to, among others things, determine qualified teachers as well as what standards of knowledge and skills are to be attained by persons aspiring to become teachers.

    “In exercising this mandate, TRCN directs its vision to regulate teacher education, training and practice at all levels of the education system in order to match teacher quality, discipline, professionalism, reward and dignity with international standards,” Wokocha added.

     

     

     

  • Teachers in 18 states to begin strike on June 1

    Teachers yesterday vowed to begin their proposed strike in 18 states on June 1 if their demands for the 27.5 per cent salary increase are not met.

    The Senate urged the federal and state governments to honour their agreement to pay the sum, to avoid another disruption in the education sector.

    The Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), President, Mr. Olukoya Alogba, spoke to reporters after a mediation meeting convened by the Senate Committee on Education between the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike and the teachers in Abuja.

    Alogba said it was lamentable that teachers were still being excluded from the National Minimum Wage.

    He appealed to the federal and state governments to honour their agreements with them or face paralysis of the education sector from June 1.

    The NUT boss said: “We want to appreciate the Education Committee of the Senate and by the extension the Senate for playing a fatherly role by intervening in this quagmire.

    “But let me assure you that on behalf of the entire teachers in this country and the 18 states where the 27.5 per cent salary increase matter has not been resolved, that from June 1, the teachers in these states will proceed on an indefinite strike.

    “We appreciate the appeal. Organisations and government officials have been appealing since 2008, but the quagmire has continued. They say once bitten twice shy.

    “We will not change our stand unless something good by way of honouring agreement comes the way of teachers.

    “We remain resolute on this. We are aware of the antics of some of government functionaries.

    “We have directed teachers in the affected states to proceed on an indefinite strike and that only the national body of the NUT shall be qualified to suspend the strike once it starts. I want Nigerians to know that the Senate is performing its functions.

    “Let President Goodluck Jonathan perform his own functions. Let the Governors’ Forum, all governors begin to respect agreements.

    “Teachers have been pushed to the wall. It is now time to say that we are not ready to be cheated again.”

  • Students, teachers trade words over exam

    Students, teachers trade words over exam

    After examination, students tell tales of how they tackled the questions. When the results are released, the tales continue, depending on whether the majority are successful or not.

    At the University of Calabar (UNICAL), there are students who do not read or attend lectures but prefer to go to parties. Such students are seen on campus during examination. When the results do not favour them, they cited various reasons ranging from strict invigilation to lecturers’ lateness to class and complicated course outline for their failure.

    Lecturers complain that students don’t start studying until examination is around the corner. They wondered how students would prepare for exam two weeks before it starts and expect to pass all the courses. When examination gets closer, the school library and classrooms are packed with students. Yet, students still fail exams.

    Some students who spoke to CAMPUSLIFE said lecturers contributed to their failure. They complained that lecturers do not start their lecture until two or three weeks to examination.

    John Ngam (not real name), a student of the Faculty of Allied Medical Science, UNICAL, said: “Two weeks to our exams, that is when lecturers come with photocopies of materials with diagrams for us to study for exams. In such situation, we are left with no choice but to burn their mid-night candle in order to get acquainted with the materials given to us. We study the materials aggressively but how many of us understandd the scope?”

    A Radiography student, who identified herself as Tracy, said: “After the August 2011 riot, semesters have been unnecessarily short but students are expected to attend all lectures without giving us break to adequately prepare for exams. This makes some of us to resort to cramming of formulas and equations that could have been learnt with ease. And when one crams to write exam, one hardly remembers anything in the examination hall. I will urge the management to look into our curriculum and see if they can reduce the work load. Many of us can no longer bear it.”

    In anger, a 500-Level student of Radiography, who did not say his name, said he and some students were delayed in writing examination because they did not submit their class admit card. “The invigilators told us to wait outside. We waited for about an hour before they later called us in. A few minutes after, we were asked to submit the answer booklets. How do they want us to pass the exam is such manner?” he said.

    There is no reason for students to start reading at the beginning of semesters, said a student of the Faculty of Management Sciences, who simply identified himself as Emmanuel. “At this period, the course outline will still be in progress. So how do we read a topic we have not been taught?” he wondered.

    A 500-Level Law student, Jessica, said the management should borrow a leaf from institutions such as University of Benin (UNIBEN) where students were given three to four weeks to prepare for semester examination. She said: “Here, we given two weeks, which is not regular, to prepare for eight to 10 courses. Last session, there was a paper which students failed woefully. We did not prepare because there was no time to do so. This was why the Dean of Law faculty ordered that the exam should be retaken.”

    A student of the department of Political Science told CAMPUSLIFE, who pleaded for anonymity, said: “I no longer understand what is going on in my department; it seems Political Science department is the toughest in UNICAL. The lecturers are too strict and many students are complaining. We need management to come to our aid.”

    A student, who is known on campus as Jackson, said students should be blamed for failure in examination. He said laziness made students to pile up work until examination caught up with them. “What students are supposes to learn in three months, they will abandon it and engage themselves in unproductive things. When the exam comes, they will race against time to read for ten courses in two weeks. Some of them will cram and still mess up at the end,” he said.

     

  • Jonathan approves recruitment of teachers for Federal Unity Colleges

    Jonathan approves recruitment of teachers for Federal Unity Colleges

    President Goodluck Jonathan has approved the recruitment of 1000 English and Mathematics teachers for the nation’s 104 Federal Government Colleges.

    Minister of State for Education, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike dropped the hint yesterday in Abuja at the openning of the first phase of the continuous professional development programme for Mathematics and English Language Teachers in the Federal Government Colleges.

    The Federal Ministry of Education is training 144 Mathematics and English Language teachers in inclusive teaching approach.

    Wike said that the Presidential approval was aimed at improving the quality of education offered by the Federal Government Colleges.

    He said: “Though, every subject is important, you all know that Mathematics and English Language occupy a special place in the nation’s education system because of their relative importance.

    “Arguably, across every career and every discipline, the relevance of Mathematics and English Language is self evident and will only continue to grow. This is why as a matter of national policy, these subjects remain compulsory.”

    He regretted the poor performance of students in the two core subjects, pointing out that the ministry was determined to address the situation.

    Wike said: “I need not over-emphasise the fact that the quality of the teacher is the most important factor that determines students’ achievements in the school system.

    “There is no way effective teaching can take place without the teacher having a deeper understanding of the subject matter, the confidence, as well as the aptitude to effectively teach the subject matter to students.”

    He noted that to achieve the desired result and concentration on the part of teachers, the two-week workshop is residential for all participants.

    In his remark, the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr MacJohn Nwaobiala, decried the student-teacher ratio of 1:350 students in Mathematics and English Language.

    Prof. Adewale Solarin, the Chief Executive of National Mathematical Centre (NMC), attributed the failures in Mathematics and English Language during public examinations to the dearth of qualified teachers.

    Coordinator of the workshop and director of Basic and Secondary Education in the Ministry. Chike Uwaezuoke said that the approval was the first time in 15years that English Language teachers of Federal Government Colleges have been involved in capacity building.

     

  • Court orders Unilorin to reinstate 26 sacked teachers

    Justice Olayinka Faji of the Federal High Court, Ilorin, on Friday ordered  the University of Ilorin to reinstate 26 sacked teachers in its secondary school.

    Faji, in his ruling, described the sack of  the teachers on Aug. 27, 2007, by the Governing Board of the school  as “ illegal and flagrant disregard for  due process.’’

    The teachers were sacked following their demand for unpaid entitlements and refusal to accept the conditions of service different from that of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities.

    The judge also ordered the institution to pay all outstanding salaries,  allowances and other entitlements due to the teachers till date.

    He said available evidences showed that the secondary school was a department of the institution and should enjoy the provisions of the University’s Act and other regulations and conditions of service.

    Faji noted that the Secondary School Governing Board that sacked the teachers could not competently act as their employer.

    He said only the University of Ilorin Governing Council, being their employer, had the sole right to terminate appointments on ground of misconduct.

    “The court is satisfied with the conditions and terms of service of the plaintiffs.

    “ The termination of their appointments is unlawful because laid down procedures were not followed.

    “The employment of the plaintiffs with the defendants is still subsisting and I grant all other reliefs as prayed,’’ he adde

  • Embrace new technologies, don tells teachers

    A computer engineer and lecturer at the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), Mr Edafogho Dennis, has advised teachers and school operators to embrace new technologies that can help teachers and students teach and learn better.

    He said this at a press conference to introduce an ICT tool, a whiteboard that has been improved by a United Kingdom-based company, Sahara Presentation Systems Plc, to do what other whiteboards cannot do.

    He said: “The 21st century teacher should have a pen that is clever enough that when you make mistakes while writing the pen will correct you. A 21st century educator should be a high level educator.”

    Dennis said of all electronic boards, clever board is the best and easy to use since it makes one read, hear, see, say, write, and remember 90 to 100 per cent when reading.

    The board, which is called clever board 4, is said to be made to be convenient for Nigeria’s hot environment.

    The press conference, held at Oxbridge Tutorial College, GRA, Ikeja, attracted the attention of school administrators from over 50 Nigerian schools.

    Speaking at the event, the Export Sales Officer, Mr Jack Wilson, said the board is far better than those that came before it like the touchlite 3.

    Also speaking at the event, Louis Ijenwa, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Foresight Computer Technology, the firm partnering with Sahara Presentation Systems in Nigeria, said many boards have been introduced but the clever board 4 will offer more services.

    He said:”The new board has flexibility of being used either as an ordinary whiteboard with the use of marker pen or as a fully functional interactive touch screen board, and that the preinstalled lynx educational software on the board comes with over 25,000 educational software and can be used on all interactive whiteboards.”