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 OVER 1000 PRIVATE SCHOOL OWNERS GRACE SWPEC 2021

By Leo Ezekiel

 

Over 1000 private school owners in Lagos State have attended the South West Professional Educators Conference 2021. For School Proprietors, School Administrators, Head Teachers and Educators with the theme (Staying Ahead in the New Normal) at de-Santos hotels by Dopemu round about Lagos.

 Speaking as one of the speakers as one of the speakers to the audience Chief Victor Akogwu who titled his paper (Curbing and Managing Staff turnover and Challenges in their schools adding that the new normal had begun many decades as there are only three big banks in the past First bank, Union bank, and United bank of Africa (UBA).

 He sated while he worked with one of the banks in the 1980’s that all of sudden, some young boys came together and started operating new generation banking system adding that they were laughing at them, but, unknown to them that the young boys were poaching on their customers  and before one could say Jack Robinson that all the wide spectrum of customers were poached from them and that they later became Ministry of Finance as he added new normal had been for a very long time.

 He stated that he using the Japanese employment model where the employees in japan work longer and in their place of employment because the working condition of services are favorable to both the employers and employees adding that in the year 2015, an alarm was sounded over what appeared to be a trend for high teachers turn over .

 He says that the teachers must be a critical thinkers, proactive, creative, communications skills must be excellent and that they are to be heavy collaborators with the owners of  their schools. He says that in Japan that there is low staff turn over much lower than in the United kingdom, United states of America as he added that there has to be team work, employment opportunity, seniority based reward system, employment protection policies for their workers.

 He stated that there must be merit based reward system, as well as intensive and internal training and re-training of the workers from time to time. He did give analysis of WAIT MENTALITY - We Are In Together and WIMO – What Is My Own as he added that when employing a teacher then there has to be proper screening of the applicant teacher, and that in writing out a letter of engagement that all the necessary information must be provided for the teacher to know his or her faith, such as basic salary, perks, mission statement, vision statement detailed job description. He stated that school owners should Avoid Halo effect in employing the staff as the employers got to look for FVP staff. Feasibility , Visibility and pull ability as he added that has to be humane staff welfare schemes as the owners give some incentives to their teachers which would largely boost their moral in their teaching skills to the pupils and students.

He stated that he met with a teacher who has taken some students to examination center and that he did hear the teacher complains bitterly that he used his personal monies to take the students to examination centers as he was not given any transport fare by the school owner. He stated that school owners should treat their teachers with love and all that and of a truth he did not disappoint audience with his scholarly expose.

Speaking to the audience the past chairman of  NAPPS Alhaji Dr. Wasiu Adumadeyin pleasantly and scholarly presented his paper titled on the Visionary School Administrator and of a truth he kept the audience spell bound with his expose as he stated that the administrator must be knowledgeable about teaching, learning process and school policies adding that he/she should have a strong communication and interpersonal skills and as well as that the administrator must make the school beautiful, unique, and very attractive.

 He says that the administrator must create a selling point for the school, also the administrator must employ the right staff, and always train them and retrain them from time to time adding that the administrator must not condone inefficiency, laziness and as well as reward hard work. He says that the administrator must have a good working relationship with the operating environment as he added that the administrator must have a good relationship with regulatory authorities. He noted that the administrator must have a policy on staff and staff welfare relationship with parents, school contractors and vendors.

 He told the audience that the administrator must adopt e-learning techniques as he/she prays because with prayers everything is possible. Speaking to the audience the Lagos State President of NAPS and Chief Amusa Mohammed Tariu Olawale the owner of Homat Group of Schools handled Inspiration Moment did use his own group of schools as a model as he did give interesting and pleasant histories of how he began his schools from 1995.

 He stated that he has 385 members of staff both teaching and Non-teaching adding that every month he pays out the sum of N 11,850,000 millon naira only as staff salaries as he also added he hates to owe his workers their salaries. He stated that he prefers to obtain loans to pay the salaries of his workers rather than purchasing a flashy car adding that the school owners should see themselves as the person God have sent to affect humanity with due love and all that.

 He says that the school owners should treat their staffs with love, staff welfare packages, that the school owners should attend the naming ceremonies of parents, teachers, contractors, vendors with gifts with the name of the school –branded on the gift items to be given out adding that school owners must be tactful before increasing school fees as he added that school owners should study the countenance of the parents at PTA meetings before such announcement would be made public to them.

He says that school owners should entertain the members of PTA with chilled water and soft drinks and possibly with snacks, rice, Fufu, Amala and all that, and again, he says that when the school owners now tells the PTA members of changes in school fees that they would accept the carrot stick whole heartedly. He says that school owners should buy some food stuffs and offer them to the teachers and by so doing the teachers would give in their best of teaching skills. He says that he has an apartment for his workers of one bedroom self-contained and at the payment of salary the school deducts the sum of five thousand naira only for the payment of the accommodation.

 He stated that school owners should in all seriousness satisfy parents with good relationship at all given times since it is from the payments they make to the school is where the school authorities draw out the cash flow for the running cost of the school. Speaking with journalists Mr. Francis Uzor Jp of Professional Educators Consult stated that the submissions the speakers have submitted to the audience would be critically, carefully and objectively studied so that the lots of private schools and education itself would be greatly harnessed for the public good of all and sundry.

 Still speaking he says that the conference has actually opened the consciousness of all the participants for the advantages of running their schools adding that the take away experiences from the erudite speakers would continually sharpening the faculties of all and sundry. Speaking with journalists Alhaji (Dr) Adumadeyin stated that the standard of education has not really gone bad, although he says that one core problem of the falling standards of education is the examination malpractice that many students, parents, examination supervisors are heavily faulted because they all play one hopeless role in the cheating business adding that if students are assisted with examination papers and answers provided for them, that by so doing the standards of education is drastically lowered down to lowest ebbs.

Speaking further he says that school owners, administrators, parents, examination supervisors and students themselves should critically, objectively shun away from such infamous act. Speaking with journalists the Lagos state president of NAPPS Chief  Olawale stated that the issues of examination malpractices is majorly by the West African Examination Council officials who supervise the national examination and the officials of the ministry of education adding that in his school such ungodly act is highly prohibited with passion as he added that no parents would have the liver to discuss the ugly trend with his management board.

Speaking further he opines that the children of these days are heavily tilted to technological applications in the manner with which they operate computers and internet facilities with ease and deftness adding that in his own opines that the standards of education have not really lowered down ward, but, that, all hands must be on deck to programmatically checkmate the ugly menace of examination practices within the body polity. The conference also showcased panel of discussants whereby participants posited questions to the discussants for more elucidations into the paper presented.