THE NATION THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2012
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EDUCATION A medical college’s push for recognition • Continued from page 25
• Acting Public Affairs Officer, United State Ms Rhoda Watson (right) receiving souvenirs from the President Fulbright Alumni Association of Nigeria (FAAN) Dr Raymond Bako (left), and the Vice-Chancellor Covenant University Ota (CU), Ogun State Prof Aize Obayan at the 11th annual conference of FAAN hosted by CU at the university's ALDC Hall PHOTO: ADEGUNLE OLUGBAMILA
Lagos NUT equips teachers for e-learning •Says no going back on strike
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ITH the new customised laptops the Lagos State wing of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has provided for its members, teaching and learning is expected to improve in public primary and secondary schools across the state in the 2012/2013 academic session. The customised laptops were launched at a colourful ceremony chaired by the Lagos State Commissioner for Education, Mrs Olayinka Oladunjoye at the Memorable Events centre, CBD, Alausa, Lagos. However, it may take a while before the teachers begin using the curriculum and customised lesson notes installed on the computers if the Lagos NUT joins 23 other states in a strike over non-payment of the 27.5 per cent Teachers Special Allowances (TSA) on Monday, despite pleas from the Lagos state government. Chairman of the union, Comrade Kayode Idowu said at the event that the government has had enough time to implement the TSA and faulted claims that the MoU did not force the government to pay the allowance. He said that the government started paying 9.2 per cent out of the 27.5 last year and promised to pay the remaining before April 2011.
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By Kofoworola Belo-Osagie and Adegunle Olugbamila
He said the union has rejected claims that the government may commence full implementation January next year. "The government set up a committee to look into the issues and they are now claiming that the MoU the national leadership of the NUT signed on the TSA did not force any state government to pay. But the Lagos State government has been paying 9.2 per cent of the allowance since last year. They are now saying they may pay the rest from January next year and we said no," he said. Speaking about the customised laptop initiative, Idowu said the union has thrown a challenge to the government to complement its efforts with provision of projectors in the classrooms. "This is a new beginning in Lagos State and the government is also buying into it. What we are doing as teachers is taking our future in our hands. The idea is brought about to meet challenges all over the world," Idowu continued 'and teachers in Lagos should not be left behind. Today, we are talking of e-learning, eexamination so on. How do our teachers meet up with these challenges? We want to challenge the
Lagos State government that they have to improve the standard of education in the state. We are challenging them to provide projectors where our teachers can fix in their laptops and beam the topic on the board for teaching to take place," he said. About 500 teachers from all the 17 NUT branches across the state, including state executives, are benefiting in the first phase of the initiative. The cost of the laptop, which is about N140,000 will be deducted in installments from their salaries. The laptops boast of lesson plans are uploaded, questions and answers for pupils for revision, and textbooks on various subjects. One of the recipients Mrs Fayemi Yetunde from Ikeja Senior Grammar School, Ikeja, commended the innovation which she said was in accordance with Lagos teachers' readiness to embrace new technology. "The Lagos State government has been assisting us teachers by sponsoring lots of training including computer training. Many of us have gone for computer training ourselves, so we are ready for the e-learning. This customised laptop will go a long way in assisting us the teachers, especially reducing the stress for us in terms of imparting knowledge to our students. We will no longer be searching for textbooks elsewhere. Everything is in the computer."
Ogun to address college welfare issues
HE Ogun State Government has assured Trade Unions of the Tai Solarin College of Education (TASCE), Ogun State, that all their demands for improved welfare packages would be met. Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mr Olusegun Odubela said this after meeting with leaders of major trade unions of the college who were agitating for increased welfare package. He said most of the demands by the unions were the ones left unattended to by the immediate past administration, adding that the present government has been paying subvention to the college and other public higher institutions since inception May last year. He therefore called on the workers to maintain the peace while the government finds lasting solution to the problem. "No solution can be provided in a rancorous environment, we must be patience and allow both the management and the state government to find lasting solution to the problem at hand," Odubela said. The Non Academic Staff Union and
Allied Institution (NASU), Tai Solarin College of Education, in a four-point demand signed by Comrades Osoba Olatunji and Osho Debowale Chairman and General Secretary, is among others demanding the immediate implementation of the new minimum wage; immediate payment of 10 months salary arrears and the constitution of the Governing Council of the college. Similar demands were also made by the Senior Staff Union of Colleges of Education in Nigeria (SSUCOEN) and Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), TASCE chapter. Meanwhile, the Ogun State Government has re-iterated its call on wealthy individuals and groups to partner with it to improve the standard of education. Odubela made the plea at the handing over of an ultra-modern library donated by Pastor John Baiyewu to Anglican High School, Abeokuta, his alma mater. Odubela said the provision of qualitative education requires huge financial commitment which can not be shouldered by the Government alone,
• Odubela
hence the need for the support of public-spirited individuals and groups. "If we must ensure standard and quality in our education system, there is need for individuals who are rich to join hands with us in our bid to improve the quality of education we give our children" he said. However, the Commissioner said that despite the lean resources at the state’s disposal, its free education programme, construction of Model Schools, rehabilitation of dilapidated blocks of classrooms and the newly introduced unified examination for secondary school students would be pursued with vigour.
load of work in the college. The number of candidates that puts in for our fellowship examinations are increasing tremendously. For the September to November 2012 examinations, we have 2,395 candidates for the Primary Examination; 1,118, Part I; and 288 for Part II. “This is a big load for the college to carry judging that our infrastructure is very poor. We do not have an examination hall that can take up to 500 candidates presently. The second wing of the Learning Resources Building we were authorized to construct since 2010 is about 50 per cent completed. “The money for the building comes in trickles. There are supposed to be four wings of this building. We moved to our present sight in 1997 which means this wing was completed by then. If it took 15 years to build half a wing of a building, how many years will it take to build the remaining two and a half wings? Something must be done and urgently too. We need help both from government and outsiders.” Apart from the building, the college is in need of a Clinical skill and simulation laboratory valued at N500 million, used to examine patients and make diagnosis; e-library, equipment for all 15 faculties, among others. Recognising that the funding it requires will not come with the present structure of operation, Wakwe said the college wrote to President Goodluck Jonathan through the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Anyim Pius Anyim seeking audience with the Ministry of Education; Ministry of Health, and Ministry of Science and Technology; on collaborative funding of the college. However, he said they got no response to date. “We need a lot of help to improve our infrastructure and purchase equipment for our college activities. We want the Federal Ministry of Education to recognise us as a tertiary education institution and request the TETFUND to give us a grant to build an examination/multipurpose hall that will take 1,500 candidates. Also, the ministry should request NUC to give us grants to improve our research capabilities. There are monies they are they are begging the universities to come and collect,” he said. Another touchy issue Wakwe said the College has to deal with is the non-recognition of its fellows that do not have PhDs. Wakwe lamented that the rise of such fellows to professorship is being stunted because their universities insist on Ph.Ds based on the directive of the NUC that it should be the minimum qualification for lecturers in the system since 2008. But Wakwe said the following the NUC’s instruction, the college advised the agency against such measure on the basis that its fellowship is deeper and richer in content than a PhD. “NUC called a meeting with us in
Our advise is that they should allow academic clinical lecturers who are voracious for knowledge to take up these degrees voluntarily as some of us have done. There are clinical lecturers in this country who have the fellowship plus masters or PhD certificates. They did it on their own without coercion 2006 in which we reached a compromise; but it was not until this year NUC sent out a letter on July 24 that they agreed to our position, but the letter was badly worded because it stated inter alia that ‘in the interim’ our Fellowship is acceptable until NUC introduces a Ph.D programme.” Prof Wakwe added: “We don’t object their introducing the programme. “Our advise is that they should allow academic clinical lecturers who are voracious for knowledge to take up these degrees voluntarily as some of us have done. There are clinical lecturers in this country who have the fellowship plus masters or PhD certificates. They did it on their own without coercion. The information for the NUC is that any postgraduate medical programme it has drawn without the approval of the Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria will be disaccredited.” One of such is Prof Tolu Odugbemi, Vice-Chancellor of the Ondo State University of Science and Technology (OSUSTECH), Okitipupa. In an interview with The Nation, he said the professional training provided by the various fellowships earn medical doctors requisite recognition in the workplace. He said academics need only to add publications to these fellowships to earn promotions, even professorship. “In medical circles, you can go into professional training by doing the various fellowships and you will be recognized by the hospitals and ministries. If you are an academic, once you have the fellowship, you just need to produce publications and you can become anything. I have always supported the idea that once you have a fellowship and publications, you can become a professor. That is why people who are not in medicine should not dabble into how much people can write. But there are some of us that just like acquiring degrees to keep us busy. I am a fellow of the postgraduate Medical College and I also have a PhD,” he said.
Parents raise N180m for hostel
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HE King’s College, Lagos Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) is seeking N180 million to construct an ultra-modern students hostel for the school. Chairman of the PTA Building Fund Raising Committee, Mr Segun Owolabi said at a briefing last Friday that when completed the building will boast of comfortable accommodation for 300 pupils, durable toilet facilities, porter’s lodge, dining room and common room – a departure from hostel accommodation in many unity schools. “If you look at most hostels in unity schools, they barely have enough fa-
cilities to take care of students, which is why many cluster in a room. But we are going to provide all the basic facilities that can make students comfortable. The hostel will be furnished so that students only to come in with their bags. There will be wardrobes, and the toilets will be state-of-the art, he said. Owolabi said before the formal fundraising event for the hostel takes place next month, the PTA would use the 103 anniversary programme of the college this week to seek support from corporate organisations, parents, philanthropists, and captains of industry.