By Yemi Itodo
As bandits and insurgents continue to threaten the peace and security of Nigeria, a seasoned school administrator has advised both school owners and relevant stakeholders on what to do, in safeguarding security around school environment.
Mrs. Barbra Omakwu, Proprietress of Barvij International School, Galadimawa, while addressing newsmen in Abuja at the weekend, shortly after the graduation ceremony of the school; said only government could not be able to fight insecurity, without the collaborative efforts of school owners and other stakeholders in the education sector.
It would be recalled that, the FCT administration, had last week, issued an order, asking schools around the nation’s capital territory to shut down, owing to threats of attacks by bandits.
Mrs. Omakwu, though welcome the development, also highlighted some of the security measures put in place in her school, in addition to the government’s efforts and guidelines.
She said, “though we are God-protect, but at our level, we are also trying our best to make sure our territory is safe. We have a lot of military personnel from the start of the school to the closing of the school, and so far, we haven’t experienced any security breach, but we are aware of what is going on in the country. We are conscious of it too, by way of providing internal security and those securing the outside and other facilities. We invest so much in security, because, without that, the children won’t be safe and there won’t be any school to call Barvij International School”.
The Proprietress also advised those running Nigeria-British curriculum like hers, to concentrate on theoretical framework for the pupils to get adequate knowledge of what the teachers are teaching.
“For now, our curriculum is 70% British and 30% Nigerian. Some of the challenges most schools face is how to blend the two curriculum because, the children are living here in Nigeria. So they have to take some of the layers so to be able to fit in for the National common interest and the Junior and Senior WAEC as it is.
“So we have to blend the two curriculum to make sure that they flow along and being able to fit into national examinations when need be. So it is a bit of a challenge because the British curriculum is centered on doing it yourself. You lecture, you teach but the pupils do it themselves. So, it is theoretical”, Mrs. Omakwu stressed.
On her part, Mrs Grace Awa Ewa, the Headteacher of the school, was of the opinion that the Federal Government should seek external intervention, in addition to the measures put in place by school Operators.
“I want the government to really do something. Because the insecurity is not just about the education sector, it is everywhere. You know, everybody is bothered. You go to bed with one eye open because you don’t know what is going to happen the next minute, so, hope the government will be able to do something and if they cannot handle it, let them look for foreign support to curtail this issue”, she said.
Mrs. Ewa also recommended that school owners should adopt the system used during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, if schools resume the new academic session in September but are still not allowed by the Government to operate, due to the security threats.
She said, “I think we may have to choose the second option, which is the online learning, even though it is not the best, but I think it will be the only option”.
