The Delta State Government has commenced needs assessment for public schools, from primary to secondary, to ascertain the resource requirements for more effective learning outcomes. According to the Commissioner for Rural Roads and Public Communication, Mr. Charles Aniagwu, who disclosed this during a recent media interaction, the exercise is aimed at determining the actual number of teachers, classrooms and facilities needed to drive the learning process across the state.
In the words of the commissioner, “We are carrying out needs assessment to ensure that decisions are based on actual requirements and ensure even distribution of facilities for teaching and learning. The assessment will also address the imbalance in teachers’ distribution.”
Moreover, the initiative will enable government embark on even distribution of teachers to bridge existing gaps between urban and rural schools. The target of the entire exercise, he summarized, is to give the schools the necessary facelift and ensure they are conducive for academic activities.
We applaud the government for the strategic push to revamp public schools in the state, an indication that it has spotted some serious deficits limiting the quality of teaching and learning in most of the schools. The current move as revealed will vastly reposition the schools and possibly make them centres of academic excellence, considering the renewed interest in public school education in the state.
We do not believe the Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori administration would be comfortable with a situation whereby the state would be relegated to the bottom league in terms of providing quality education for its people. As it were, some states in the federation are already on the march to arm their public schools with the best of educational infrastructure and facilities to raise the standard of teaching and learning in accord with global best practices.
Some of the issues that are likely to be uncovered by the needs assessment policy are the seeming lack of modern facilities that promote learning. Ordinarily, public schools, in urban and rural locations, should be equipped with standard and adequate furniture, science and computer laboratories, and workshops. These, sadly, are in short supply in this era of information technology and advanced science.
The team charged with the responsibility would also find out that some of the schools operate in dilapidated structures; bare, dusty floors, leaking roofs and outdated chalk board system. Some of the schools especially in urban areas are overcrowded because of the demand and supply factors, which we believe are not taken into serious consideration by educational planners over the years.
The demand for education is unquestionably higher in urban centres on account of migration patterns and new births, while there is acute inadequacy at the supply end. This is a situation that shackles the learning environment, making it difficult for teachers to impart knowledge and supervise students, as well as providing students the opportunity to display unacceptable behaviours.
The pathfinders will also discover that the schools lack toilet facilities, forcing teachers and students alike to convert nearby bushes to sanitary places to ease themselves. The implications of this are the pollution of the environment and possible spread of preventable diseases and illnesses that could be contagious.
Unarguably, the foregoing would not in any way facilitate the knowledge acquisition process, which is why we are gratified that Governor Sheriff Oborevwori has dispatched a team to conduct needs assessment for schools. It is a reassuring the state government has embarked on expanding physical infrastructure of educational institutions at the primary and secondary levels. But in our considered view, public schools in cities and selected urban areas should be adorned with multiple storey buildings to address accommodation shortages.
Furthermore, the schools should be equipped with modern facilities that are lacking as earlier mentioned; standard science laboratories, computer laboratories, and workshops for other subject areas that require real practical training and demonstration. Definitely, these would greatly optimize the process of teaching and learning.
The need to comprehensively revamp public schools in the state is a positive trajectory that we all crave, the third decade into the 21st century. We must emphasize that conducive school environment enhances productivity in teaching and learning.
