Comprehensive Senior High School, please Alapere, Lagos, has taken chemistry beyond the classroom, giving students an opportunity to test their knowledge of the subject through practical activities, competitions and discussions on its application in everyday life and industry.

The initiative was part of the school’s Chemistry Day celebration held on October 28, 2026, where students participated in periodic table challenges, listened to lectures on skills acquisition and explored career opportunities in chemistry.

The competition featured a periodic table arrangement and puzzle challenge for Senior Secondary School Three (SS3) students, alongside a periodic table writing challenge for SS1 students.

According to Ajijola Bamidele, the District II coordinator of the Chemistry Teachers Association of Nigeria (CHETAN), 59 out of 70 participants scored above 70 per cent, representing an 84.3 per cent pass rate, while 11 students scored below the mark.

The exercise was designed to test students’ understanding of the periodic table and encourage active engagement with chemistry beyond conventional classroom teaching.

The event also featured lectures on education, skills acquisition and the application of chemistry in industry, as well as the launch of a school skills acquisition programme.

Speaking on building a future through education and skills acquisition, a lecturer at Yaba College of Technology Dr Oluseun Popoola, urged students to develop their natural talents and acquire relevant skills to improve their future opportunities.

She identified digital, vocational and soft skills as important areas young people should explore, noting that digital skills could provide opportunities to work remotely and earn from different parts of the world.

Popoola cited content creation as one of the entry points into the digital economy. She also identified fashion design, tailoring, plumbing and sanitary engineering as vocational skills that could help individuals meet their needs and address challenges within their communities.

She stressed that technical abilities alone were not enough, highlighting the importance of soft skills such as communication, respect, courtesy and consistency.

In a lecture on the application of chemistry in industry, the managing director and chief executive officer of Fundamental Technology Limited, chemist Abdul Gafar Adeleye Tijani described chemistry as the engine room of industrial development.

He explained that chemists contribute to different stages of industrial production, including the identification and evaluation of raw materials, process development, product development and quality control.

He said industries across different sectors depend on the knowledge and expertise of chemists to function effectively, urging students to approach the subject with curiosity and seek to understand the principles behind chemical processes rather than simply memorising what they are taught.

The principal of Comprehensive Senior High School, Adedeji Adesanmi Olumuyiwa, commended the school’s Department of Science for organising the programme, describing it as part of efforts to promote scientific knowledge, creativity, practical learning and innovation.

He recalled that the department organised a Science Day programme the previous year, expressing hope that the Chemistry Day initiative would become a lasting tradition in the school.

Olumuyiwa urged students to participate actively in the activities, ask questions and learn from the invited speakers. He also called on teachers and other departments to sustain the initiative, despite the transfer of some teachers who had been involved in organising previous editions.

Meanwhile, the convener of the convener of the event, Mrs Akindele Faosiyat Abidemi called on the government to intervene and support the expansion of the competition, urging philanthropists to contribute to the initiative.

She described skills development as a tool for tackling unemployment from the grassroots and stressed the need to move chemistry education beyond theoretical instruction to practical application.

The celebration also marked the launch of the school’s skills acquisition programme, reflecting efforts to expose students to practical competencies and opportunities beyond conventional classroom learning.