Against the backdrop of the current harsh economic realities and the lamentations of parents as their children and wards prepare to return to school for the 2024/2025 academic session, GBENGA SALAU, in this report, appraises the idea of making workbooks a part of textbooks, which has disrupted the practice of younger ones reusing textbooks already used by their elderly siblings or family friends, thereby adding to the financial burden of parents and guardians.

As pupils and students count days to resume the next academic session, parents are not only thinking about how to pay the school fees but also about the cost of all the required textbooks many of which will no longer be suitable for reuse as was the case in the past. This is especially for parents whose children and wards are enrolled in private schools as against government-owned schools that are tuition free.

Incidentally, private schools are fast becoming schools of first choice for many parents with respect to primary and secondary education, especially in urban areas. For instance, in Lagos, a government document revealed that there are over 18,000 private primary and secondary schools against the about 1,700 government-owned primary and secondary schools in the state. Although the data from other states could not be obtained, this points to the fact that private primary and secondary schools are proliferating due to the level of patronage from parents.  
 
But with the harsh economy and the cost of living shooting higher, parents and guardians are not only lamenting the pains that come with paying school fees, but also fretting about paying for textbooks at the beginning of every first term, some of which will never be reused. This is because unlike in the past when two to four siblings could use the same textbooks overtime, parents must now buy new textbooks for each child at the beginning of every academic session because workbooks have been made part of textbooks. Before now, workbooks were separate learning materials that were bought differently, if need be, which gave room for textbooks to be reused. But today, workbooks, class works, home works are all embedded in one textbook.     
 
With this, the practice of an older child passing his or her textbook to his or her younger ones or family friends for reuse has become impossible, as a textbook must be discarded at the end of every academic year.
  
A document from the Lagos State Bureau of Statistics revealed that about 1.015 million pupils and students were registered across the public primary and secondary schools in the state in the 2019/2020 academic year.

The Guardian could not access the definite data about the present number of pupils and students enrolled in the over 18,000 private primary and secondary schools scattered across the state. However, a census on pupils and students enrolled in private primary and secondary schools in the 2010/2011 by a development agency revealed that there were 1,385,190 pupils in 11,896 schools while the 202 schools that did not provide enrolment data have an additional estimated 23,230 pupils, meaning 1,408,420 pupils in 12,098 schools then. So, taking the two statistics into consideration, there are not less than 2.7 million pupils and students in Lagos State primary and secondary schools, public and private.This implies that if a pupil/student uses four textbooks on the average per academic year, about 10.8 million textbooks end up being generated as waste yearly in Lagos State alone.  
 
Sharing her experience, Mrs. Chidimma Okonkwo, who has four children whose age differences are between two years and 14 months, said that over the years, she and her husband had been buying the same textbooks at the beginning of every academic calendar because they are not reusable due to the marked pages.
 
She said she was not happy with the situation because the majority of the textbooks for the first child who is now in a secondary school were not reused by the younger ones despite being the same textbooks the family repeatedly bought. She also noted that even when some of the pages of the textbooks are still good, the workbook or pages for home and class assignments that had been used up would render them not usable again.
 
“Even if the younger ones decide to use the textbooks, they cannot use them again because there would be no workbook pages for them when given assignments,”   she observed.
 
Okonkwo lamented that it was not the case during her days in primary and secondary schools as most of the textbooks her parents bought for her were reused by her four younger siblings. She noted that unlike then, class works and home works were done in notebooks, not in textbooks.
  
Another parent, Oluwabukola Bassey, who noted that the cost of books have gone up like every other item in the market, said that this year she was faced with the challenge of paying almost N200,000 for books for her two children in secondary schools. “It is concerning, seriously,” she said, urging publishers to reconsider the practice of putting exercises in the textbooks.
  
“Imagine the waste of books after a school year. We don’t incorporate workbooks into literature texts and story books and parents still buy them. So, we need to revert to having workbooks separate or downloadable online after purchase of the main textbook. They could even be sold as a pack,” Bassey stated.
  
She called on the government to enforce a return to the old practice, saying: “Government intervention is necessary, but it doesn’t have to be only about the textbooks and workbooks problem. Government should remove the tax on paper importation. Who is listening to publishers with a view to ensuring that bottlenecks to the industry’s growth are removed? How can we make all books more affordable for more people? These are the issues.”
  
Also, Adeyemi Adesanya, who expressed worry that schools now include the cost of the textbooks in their tuition fees, complained that the non-reuse of textbooks has drastically increased the cost of funding children’s education. “There is an urgent need for the Quality Assurance office under the Ministry of Education in Lagos to look into such excesses by school managements, especially private schools,” he said.
 
Another parent, Lukman Balogun, stated that funding children’s education has not been easy considering the current economic situation in the country. “I have a heap of textbooks used by my children, now kept in their rooms, which cannot be reused by any of them unlike what obtained during our time when we relied on the textbooks already used by our siblings, even our neighbours, family and friends.
  
“Truly, textbooks are not reusable any longer and this is eating deep into our pockets. As they are resuming for a new session now, you have to consider paying for school fees, school bus, ‘extra class’, even buy new school uniforms, and shoes, among others. You have to also struggle to buy new textbooks for them.
 
“It is excruciating and not encouraging at all. Education that most of us and even our leaders enjoyed was not like this and should have been better managed for the future generations,” Balogun said.
 
He implored the government to look into ways of ensuring a return to the old ways of having home works and class works separate from the textbooks. “This will allow parents to keep those textbooks for others to use and we will not in any way be going through rigour to provide adequate educational support for our children, which is already supposed to be made free by the government according to their campaign promises while seeking for votes. I believe the regulatory bodies should sanction the schools that conspire with the book publishers to implement this idea,” he advised.
 
A retired teacher, Mrs. Priscilla Amaole, said she was a bit torn about the new trend of inserting workbooks in textbooks though it might be a bit convenient for students to have everything in one place.
  
“I remember when I was teaching; students would always misplace their worksheets or forget their workbooks at home. So, in theory, this should simplify things.
  
“But, on the other hand, it is a bit of a step backward. Textbooks are already expensive, and now they are becoming disposable. I mean, once you have filled out the workbook section, the whole book is essentially useless to anyone else. That just seems wasteful to me.
  
“And what about students who need extra practice or review? They can’t just grab an extra workbook; they need to buy a whole new textbook. It is not very flexible.
 
“I also worry about the environmental impact. We are already producing so much waste and now we are adding more to the landfill. If I am being completely honest, this trend is driven more by profit than a genuine desire to improve education. Publishers are just looking for ways to sell more books,” she observed.
  
On whether the practice of inserting workbooks into textbooks improves learning, Amaole stated that it might help some students stay organised and focused, but it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution.
 
“Honestly, I’m not entirely sold on the idea that embedding workbooks in textbooks automatically improves learning outcomes. “I have seen students who thrive in structured environments, and this format might work wonders for them. They will appreciate the clear guidance, immediate feedback and sense of accomplishment as they complete exercises.
  
“On the other hand, some students might find it too restrictive or rigid. They might need more freedom to explore, question and learn at their own pace. Forcing them into a rigid workbook format could stifle their creativity and curiosity.
 
“And let’s not forget about the teachers. They are the ones who truly make or break the learning experience. If they are not trained to effectively integrate these workbooks into their teaching, it’s just another gimmick.
 
“To genuinely boost learning outcomes, we need to address the root issues – inadequate teacher support, outdated curricula and insufficient resources. We need to foster a love for learning, encourage critical thinking and provide personalised attention.
 
“This workbook-in-textbook trend might be a small step forward, but it is not a game-changer. We need to think bigger, more creatively and more humanely.”  Amaole noted that the profit angle with regard to publishers and school owners is hard to ignore because publishers are in business and this new format is a clever way to boost sales.
 
“But education shouldn’t be about lining corporate pockets. It’s about giving students the best possible tools to learn and grow. If this format truly enhances learning, great! But if it’s just cash grab, that’s problematic.
  
“As a teacher, I have seen how quickly educational trends come and go. Sometimes they stick; sometimes they flop. This workbook-in-textbook thing might be innovative, but it also feels like a way to keep students (and teachers) tied to expensive, proprietary materials.
 
“I am not saying publishers are evil or anything but we need to keep things in perspective. Education should serve students not shareholders,” Amaole said.
On if the government, as the regulator, has any role in the issue, the retired teacher said that governments really needed to step in and regulate the textbook industry because it is getting out of hand, with parents already stressed about education costs.
  
“And now they are forced to buy new, expensive textbooks every year that can’t even be reused. It is like the industry is taking advantage of parents’ desperation. Textbooks are a necessity, not a luxury. Governments should push for digital or open-source options, set standards for quality and durability, and encourage competition among publishers.
  
“Some countries are already doing this, and it’s making a difference. Digital textbooks, rental schemes, and open educational resources are helping to make education more accessible.
  
“By regulating the industry, governments can ease the financial burden on parents, ensure every child has access to quality education and promote innovation. It is time for governments to listen to parents’ concerns and take action. Education is a fundamental right not a privilege for the few,” Amaole stressed.
 
Also, a lecturer in the Department of Guidance and Counselling, University of Calabar, Cross River State, Lale Peniel Silver, said textbooks are produced to improve learning and help students increase their learning experience.
 
“In recent times, the combining of textbooks and workbooks into one, making it non-reusable, is only beneficial to producers and authors. There is no significant data showing that workbooks in textbooks improve learning outcomes. This is because most workbooks are just for assessment purposes; it is not made for new learning topics outside what the textbooks are expected to teach the students.
 
“There should be a guideline from the government instructing that workbooks be made as standalone learning materials, ensuring that workbooks are not made compulsory as textbooks. Tests and exams are better for assessing students’ strength and weaknesses in academics.”
 
According to Silver, it is important that the workbooks are separated from the textbooks as it will help relieve parents of the expense of buying workbooks that pose as extra materials for learning. 
  
“It will also reduce the burden on students as the impact of online learning has caused a short attention span in this generation of students. It means that extra learning paper materials will discourage students from focusing on academics.”
 
Disagreeing with the views, an author and publisher of educational materials, Michael Omisore, noted that though the purchasing power of parents has been badly affected by the harsh economy, inserting workbooks in textbooks is part of the step to make school textbooks to be more engaging for learners.
 
“I can speak for myself at least. I have never sat with any school owner to plan the layout of my textbooks for personal gain for me or the school owner. That would be against the best practices of academic publishing. The reality is that a textbook has to be functional as well as appealing in look and feel.
  
“The functionality angle is why workbooks are recommended for students – to aid their active learning, reinforce knowledge, promote independent learning and allow students to take ownership of their knowledge pursuit. And the same economic reason parents may have against publishers regarding having workbook and textbook combination in one volume may be the reason publishers are now incorporating workable exercises in their textbooks so that parents won’t need to buy two volumes – one textbook and one workbook for the same subject text,” he explained.   He, however, stated that not all textbooks should come in the format of having exercises that students can write in with ink.
 
“My publishing firm has a number of textbooks, and not all of them come in that format, but the ones that do need to have students engaging more actively to deliver their goods. Such textbooks are not just meant to be read; they are meant to be used.
   
“They are to be used as tools for learning the way a mechanic uses the spanner and screwdriver. There won’t be much argument on this if parents or any party can understand that textbooks as learning resources are not just meant to be read but are also meant to be used.
 
“On the other hand, I will not spare some textbook publishers regarding their production, whether a textbook or the textbook-workbook combination format in question. I see some textbooks and I wonder how they ever see the light of day. That is what parents should be concerned about. The functionality and appeal, the content and essence of the textbooks their children are using.
  
“How many of the parents complaining about the format of textbooks complain about how readable, understandable or actively engaging the textbooks are? How many of them even know that certain textbooks are below par in qualitative learning and ready to take things up with the school on that? All that many parents are after is how not to buy the same textbook again for their younger children when they reach that class level. Is that all there is to consider?
  
“The education space is supposed to be an informed space, not a conformed or conditioned one. And in this informed space, there is room for dialogue, but there should not be room for compromise. “

“Regarding dialogue, have parents, through their associations, started discussing with their wards’ schools about digital texts and resources so that their children will have more than enough quality text materials without them buying paper textbooks again? That is the kind of discussion we should be having. Digital is here in the present and it is actually the future,” Omisore stated.
 
The Deputy Director, Public Affairs, Lagos State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Ganiu Lawal, provided insight into how books used in the state are approved, saying for minor review, the author/publisher writes the Permanent Secretary requesting the review of his book.
  
“At least three copies of the book are submitted at the Curriculum Department. The books are reviewed by three independent reviewers using clearly laid out criteria, among which are: A compliance with the National Curriculum and Lagos State Unified Schemes of Work, age appropriateness, depth of coverage, and copiousness of exercises for assessment,” he explained.
  
According to him, if the book is found approvable, a letter of approval is issued upon payment of the review fee to the state coffers. A major book review follows the same process like the minor review though it is done once in three years. The approved books from major reviews are listed and published in booklets as against issuing of letters.
 
On why the state government approves textbooks with workbooks, Lawal disclosed that one of the criteria for approval is the copiousness of exercises for assessment.
 
“These exercises are expected after each of the chapters to test what has been read/taught. It is the standard internationally. However, we are not oblivious of the fact that some school teachers abuse this to prevent parents from passing the books to their younger siblings. That said, the monitoring agency would continue to be on the lookout for such infractions and mete out appropriate sanctions to erring schools,” he said.
  
When confronted with the claims by parents that the inclusion of workbooks in textbooks was not the norm before now and that schools and publishers connived with regulators to implement the current model, Lawal debunked the claims, insisting that the process of approval is transparent and verifiable. He, however, refused to comment on whether the government would give a thought to reviewing the idea of having workbooks in textbooks.