THE need to prepare children and young adults in Nigeria for societal relevance now and in future in the emerging world of work and knowledge economy has made it imperative for the country to include leadership skills development in the school curriculum from primary to tertiary level.
Doing this will enable schools, public and private-owned alike, to produce fit-for-purpose and future ready learners that will create wealth and solution-providers even while still in schools rather than being job seekers after graduation.
This was the summation of thoughts and perspectives of participants at the one-day workshop organised by an education technology company, Teesas Education, in Lagos, last Wednesday.
The hybrid event, which was organised in conjunction with Franklin Covey, a global education resource training centre, has many high- profile school owners and administrators, managers and other stakeholders in Nigeria’s education sector in attendance.
They discussed leadership development in children with a focus on the transformative “Leader in Me” programme.
The ‘Leader in Me’ programme addresses school development in three core areas: culture, leadership and academics, and enhances student development by coaching them to look towards becoming effective leaders to themselves and to others now and in the future.
Welcoming participants, chairman/CEO of Teesas Education, Mr Osayi Izedonmwen, said the ‘Leader in Me’ programme was designed as a paradigm shift from the old ways and manner school activities and purposes were given to a new and more evolving fashion that will shape learners’ orientation, thinking and focus to be life-ready leaders right from when they are in school.
He pointed out that the era where students are taught and prepared primarily to pass examinations for the purpose of getting paid employment rather than becoming wealth creators and leaders in their chosen field is no longer relevant in today’s world where new knowledge on doing things is evolving daily.
He said this identified gap is what the ‘Leader in Me’ programme is actually aimed at closing by inculcating seven habits of highly effective people in children as they pursue their academic journeys.
He said that was what made the difference between technology advanced countries and Africa, with the former economically leading with a wide gap.
Giving insight into the programme, the regional director of partnering Franklin Covey Education, Mr Justin Permenter, who spoke virtually, stressed that globally, there is a shift from the industrial to the knowledge-age economy and every country must have to move along.
He shared insights from the World Economic Forum Future of Jobs 2023 Report that suggests that analytical and creative thinking, technological literacy, empathy and active listening, team work, leadership and social influence were some of the skills deemed to be of greatest importance for the future workers.
Speaking separately on the sub-theme of the workshop, ‘Implementing Socio-Emotional Leadership Development in Schools Using ‘Leader in Me,’ the discussants including the Founder of Oxbridge Tutorial College, Dr Femi Ogunsanya and the executive director of Standard Bearers School, Mrs Modupe Adeyinka-Oni, acknowledged that there is need to re-evaluate Nigeria’s school curriculum to incorporate contents that will make learning more practical than theoretical.
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