The Kogi State Government has announced sweeping reforms aimed at easing financial burdens on parent and restoring discipline in the education sector.
The State Commissioner for Education, Hon. Wemi Jones, disclosed the measures in meeting with education stakeholders in Lokoja stated that signing out ceremonies in tertiary institutions have been banned with immediate effect.
Similarly, annual graduation ceremonies in primary and secondary schools will be replaced with Speech and Prize Giving Days.
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Formal graduation will only be permitted after the completion of Senior Secondary School examinations in both private and public secondary schools in the state.
According to Jones, the changes are designed to reduce the social excesses associated with frequent celebrations and to promote a more cost-effective school system in the state.
He urged stakeholders to familiarise themselves with, and support the full implementation of the Kogi State Education Law of 2020 which he said contains rules and regulations that governs education sector in the state.
The commissioner further announced a ban on convertion of textbooks into workbooks, adding that parents are now expected to provide notebooks or exercise books for assignments so that textbooks can be preserved and reused by siblings or students in successive classes.
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Jones also demands strict compliance with other state regulations, including mandatory participation in government-organised mock examinations, spreading that any school that fails to sit the compulsory mock examination will not have its students cleared for by the Senior Secondary Examination by the West African Examination Council (WAEC).
He emphasised that the government’s broader goals include reducing the number of out of school children, improving education quality, and integrating information and communication technology (ICT) into teaching and learning.
The commissioner appealed to private school proprietors, parent-teachers’ associations, and all stakeholders in the education sector to support the vision of Governor Usman Ahmed Ododo of a disciplined and affordable education system for all in the state.
