The Headmaster of Sabon Layi Primary School, Bichi, in Bichi Local Government Area, Malam Auwal Abubakar Baduku, has lamented the absence of essential facilities necessary for conducive teaching and learning in the school.
He made a passionate appeal to the state governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, to come to the school’s aid, highlighting that with a pupils population of 1,764, they share only four toilets with their teachers.
Speaking during a visit by members of the Correspondents’ Chapel, Alhaji Baduku revealed that “most pupils in the school are sitting on a bare floor receiving teaching from their teachers.”
Some pupils in the school also pleaded with the state government to provide more toilets to prevent open defecation, which they said “can pose a serious health risk to us.”
Highlighting the dire situation, the Headmaster said the school virtually lacks furniture, noting that most of the 1,764 pupils receive lessons on bare floors and share only four toilets with their teachers.
According to him, “This is evidence that cannot be hidden because our school is facing an acute shortage of teachers, as there are only 39 teaching staff (both permanent, temporary, and casual) handling 18 classrooms on the basis of one teacher per three classrooms.”
He appealed to the state government to address these challenges to ensure the successful implementation of the state of emergency in the education sector.
However, he emphasised that the state government alone cannot shoulder the responsibility of education, calling on wealthy individuals to complement the government’s efforts by providing the necessary materials to boost education in the state.
While at the Dawakin-Tofa Modern Primary School in Dawakin-Tofa Local Government Area, the Headmaster, Alhaji Sabi’u Sunusi Idris, commended the state government for providing furniture, teaching materials, water, and toilet facilities in the school.
He, however, decried the absence of security in the school, noting that with 1,212 students and 32 teachers, the school has no perimeter fence or security guards.
According to him, “because of this, the school has been exposed to thieves who have been stealing its valuables.”
Meanwhile, some parents of Sabon Layi Primary School, Bichi, Latifatu Jibrin Bichi and Abdulrahman Idris, acknowledged the government’s efforts in the education sector but urged it to provide uniforms, furniture, instructional materials, more teachers, and toilet facilities for the school.
They stated that “because of the lack of furniture in the school, most of our children sit on mats and other materials to receive lessons, which not only disturbs but makes teaching unconducive for learning.”
A student, Muhammadu Idris, also made a heartfelt appeal to the state government to address the major challenges facing learning in the school, particularly the lack of toilets, furniture, chairs, and tables.
According to him, “apart from the fact that it may cause untold hardship and illness, it is also capable of leading to the dropout of pupils from school.”
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