Stakeholders in the senior secondary education section have called for the inclusion of alternative sources of power supply in schools to enhance the smart school initiative.
They also threw their weight behind the benchmark set by the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) that qualification for appointment of a principal should be a minimum of 12 years post-graduation experience and competence.
These formed part of their resolution at the end of a two-day stakeholders’ meeting on national minimum standards and draft strategic plans for senior secondary education in Abuja.
Participants, including the Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman; Minister of State for Education, Dr Yusuf Sununu, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Mrs Didi Walson-Jack and Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Basic Education, Mukhtar Shagaya, among others, provided feedback, offering diverse perspectives to enhance the effectiveness of minimum standards in secondary schools in the country.
The event was organised by the National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), in collaboration with the World Bank and support from AGILE project.
Signed by the chairman of the communique drafting committee, Daniel Uwaezuoke, the meeting recommended that a “separate column should be created for implementing organs/agencies that are expected to take responsibility for strategies”.
They also suggested a minimum of six classrooms at inception, to guarantee the availability of classrooms in the succeeding years should there be budget failure.
In their separate messages, they submitted that the development of the two documents marked a significant milestone in the ongoing efforts to reposition the sub-sector for quality service delivery.
The Executive Secretary, NSSEC, Dr Iyela Ajayi, said the commission has successfully developed a policy on secondary education and its implementation, which would be launched before the year runs out.
According to him, the policy is designed to provide a comprehensive framework and guidelines for the operation of senior secondary education in the country.
Participants also included commissioners of education from the 36 states of the federation, chief executives of ministries, departments, and agencies, as well as directors of education at federal and state levels.
