Funmi Ogundare
Chrisland Schools Limited has received the Most Outstanding Private Secondary School Award by the National Education Summit and Awards.
The award was in recognition of the school’s continued drive for excellence as exhibited in its learners’ performances in local and international examinations, sports and other co-curricular activities.
The National Education Summit is a platform to dialogue on solutions to challenges bedeviling education in Nigeria, along with various practices essential for expanding learning opportunities and promoting a culture of innovation and excellence in the educational sector in Nigeria.
The platform also recognises educational outfits that are playing active roles in positively shaping the Nigerian experience.
Meanwhile, the Managing Director of Chrisland Schools, Ibironke Olatokunbo Adeyemi, has appealed to the government to encourage the private sector by cushioning taxation on private schools.
She also said the government should develop policies that will favour the education sector and the economy in the long run.
Adeyemi stated this while reacting to the conduct of the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in August, as against the usual May/June.
She expressed concern that this would put pressure on teachers who have to go the extra mile to continue teaching students even after completing the curriculum for the session.
Addressing journalists during a virtual meeting, she explained that there should be more planning by the government.
Adeyemi said: “Private schools are facing a lot of challenges. We have to provide everything ourselves, yet we are bombarded with taxes and regulations as well as inconsistent policies.”
She also expressed concern about the poor budgetary allocation for education, calling for an increase and that lecturers must be better paid to work with improved facilities for teaching and learning.
Explaining how the school coped during the pandemic, she said, “we ensured that all our learners came on board with their devices. We have our learning system, and we made use of available resources, Google classroom and software to teach students, which made learning fun. It’s been a very positive experience.”
Asked how the school has maintained quality considering its many branches in Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt, she noted: “We are the first school to set up a quality assurance department. They go round all our schools to check what we are doing and ensure that it is of quality in conformity with what we are recommending to meet best practices abroad. We ensure that our staff are trained and appraised every year.”
