Report of the greater Ogbona through quality education

REPORT OF THE GREATER OGBONA THROUGH QUALITY EDUCATION & HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT SEMINARS HELD FROM THE 24TH TO 26TH JULY, 2017 IN OGBONA.

Ogbona village has a total resident population of about 15,162 as of 2011. Ogbona has 3 public primary schools with about 1,124 pupils and 6 private primary schools, one public secondary school and one private secondary school.  The public secondary school has a total enrollment of about 672 students made up of 358 Boys and 304 girls.

1. The essence of this program was to meet and overcome the challenges posed to our community by student’s poor academic performance, truancy, indiscipline, poor school management and cultism.
2. The responses to these challenges shall be three pronged, namely;
3. Workshops and seminars for the teachers [training the trainers]
4. Career talk and seminars on cultism and restiveness, human capital development and entrepreneurship.
5. Repositioning Ogbona schools through proper management and good lesson delivery for moral and academic excellence.

OBJECTIVES OF THESE PROGRAMS

To guide the students on:

• Their career paths or choices
• The danger of cultism
• How to scan the environment for business opportunities
• How to be self-reliant through entrepreneurial programs
• How to be good ambassadors of your family, community and nation

 

STRUCTURES

1. All the three primary school’s teachers (37 teachers) shall be combined for the training program just as both the JSS & SSS teacher be combined too
2. All the secondary school students shall have a combined class for the keynote address and shall be divided thereafter into junior and senior secondary school.
3. There will be vocational interest forms to be filled out by the SS 2 and SS3 and evaluated by a combined team of teachers and a counsellor

TOPICS AND SPEAKERS

1. Keynote Address: CULTISM & GOOD CITIZENSHIP by Prof. Johnson Egwaikhe & Dr. David Imhonopi
2. Exciting World of Geology and Engineering (what it takes to be a scientist) by Mr. Gilbert Odior
3. Career Profiling for Professional Disciplines by Mr. Emmanuel Anabor
4. Education and the need for Entrepreneurship Skills by Mr. Abaye Igbadumhe
5. Discovering Self Values and Potentials – Adeolu Aderoju
6. Re-inventing the ideal teacher: Training the Trainers primary and secondary school teachers by Mr. Bernard Ikhane
7. Vocational interest Inventory career forms

 

 

The Train the Trainers seminar which held on 24th of July, 2017 was titled:

RE-INVENTING THE IDEAL TEACHER & TEACHING METHODOLOGIES, while the 2nd day, being 25th of July, 2017 was captioned RE-INVENTING THE IDEAL TEACHER: CLASS ROOM MANAGEMENT & CONTROL.  Both sessions held at Imhakhena Primary School and Ogbona Secondary School, separately.

The Primary School training program was attended by teachers from Imhakhena, Oboarekpe and Asama primary schools. The program started at 11:03 a.m.  with an opening prayer by Chief Akpaibor. Soon after, the Secretary General of Ogbona Elites Forum, Mr. Anaweokhai John Odior was called upon to give a synopsis of the entire program which he did very quickly and made way for The Human Resources Personnel, The Vice President of Ogbona Elites Forum, Mr. Bernard Ikhane and he went straight into business. He started with a teaser on teacher’s instructional capability which all the teachers failed. The video clip on how a monkey could be taught to climb and plough coconut was the icy on the cake. After watching the clip, the instructor guided the teachers to do an analysis to determine how learning takes place in a classroom setting.  The Chairperson of Ogbona Elites Board of trustees, Pastor Mrs. Julie Inu Umoru, came on both days and used her space bus to convey some of the equipment. The Okphe-Ukpi came personally on the second day to see things for himself. At the end of the training program, all the teachers were elated and appreciated Ogbona Elites Forum for sharpening their teaching skills. We must commend the effort of our Vice President for his display of professional expertise in taking all the teachers on a-no- holds-bar educational tour of every aspect of the teaching profession. It was both theoretical and practical with the use of video clips. Teachers were given the opportunity to air their views and asked questions to clear some grey areas.

The format at the secondary school was not different. The Palace was represented by Chief Akpaibor and Chief Ogah. Pastor Mrs. Julie In Umoru was also present.

The two School Principals were in attendance on both days.

On the whole, 33 out of a total of 37 primary school teachers attended the program. Among the attendees are:

IMHAKHENA PRIMARY SCHOOL:

1. Otsoi M.O Mrs.
2. Omomoh M.O Mrs.
3. Aronokhale Regina
4. Akhamiemhona Patience
5. Oleghe M.E Mrs.
6. Ikhaghu Joy Mrs.
7. Damissah I Marius
8. Ikhanoba Magdalene
9. Obemeata F.N Mrs.
10. Idode S.A Mrs.

OBOAREKPE PRIMARY SCHOOL:

1. Enamhegbai E. I. Mrs.
2. Idris C.M Mrs.
3. Aigbina G.E Mrs.
4. C. Mrs.
5. Akhamie E. Mrs.
6. Aliu B.Z Mrs.
7. Orbih S.O Miss
8. Enakpene P Miss
9. Okhimamhe O.G Mrs.
10. Asemoh Charles Mrs.
11. Umole Juliana Mrs.
12. Isunuevho Nanashiat Mrs.
13. Azimheye Lucy Mrs.
14. Aruokhai E.O Mrs.
15. Azimhi J.E Mrs.

ASAMA PRIMARY SCHOOL:

1. Osigwe Angela
2. Odion Patience
3. Ikhane Henrietta
4. Izibiri Eugenia Agunofua
5. Odia Loveth Aishat
6. Oshiotse Victoria
7. Aseghiemhe A Thomas
8. Ikem Betty

 OGBONA SECONDARY SCHOOL:

1. Aigbonoga Joshua
2. Anamomhe Abdul Jabar
3. Omodibo Idris
4. Aliu Stella
5. Itsuokor Omone Esther
6. Edogamhe Georgia E
7. Anugioba Victoria
8. Akpaibor Joan
9. Idikhumhi Caleb
10. Ikhana Samson
11. Omoaka Umar Farouk
12. Ilega Emmanuel F
13. Aliu Jennifer
14. All the youth corps members.

 

26th July, 2017 was the grand finale of the program. Although we had to put the hall in order before the program could commence, the students were assembled at about 10 a.m. for a brief address by Mr. Ikhane. Some of the SS2 students were a bit unruling and one of them had to be suspended by the Mr. Ben Ikhane and the entire class was made to kneel down on the assembly ground and render unreserved apology to the school. This disciplinary measure restored calmness and helped in no small measure to ensure we had a hitch-free session with them as they cooperated maximally, thereafter.

The keynote Address on CULTISM, YOUTH RESTIVENESS & GOOD CITIZENSHIP was delivered by Prof. Johnson Egwaikhe, while his wife, Mrs. Clarita Panuel Egwaikhe, ably assisted him with the projector. He took the students on a roller coaster ride on the dangers inherent in cultism, its negative effects on the individual, in particular, and the larger society, in general, the benefits of good citizenship, as well as the opportunity that accrue to responsible people in the society. The female students were not spared, as they were tutored about the dangers of waywardness and promiscuity. Thereafter,

Anaweokhai John Odior gave a brief history of The Ogbona Elites Forum and the readiness of the forum to assist the students to get to the apogee of their academic pursuits, provided they showed elements of seriousness in their studies. Mr. Adeolu Aderoju took the students round on the exciting world of Geology & Engineering and what it takes to become a scientist. He combined it with the topic: Discovery Self Value in a devaluing society.

After the break, Prof. Egwaikhe had to cover the ground on the subjects the students need to obtain credit passes on as prerequisites for various courses in the higher institutions.

Mr. Ben Ikhane had earlier taken time to train the teachers on how to handle the questionnaires on the Vocational Interest Inventory (VII)/ Counseling Session. The students were individually taken through the filling processes of the forms by selected teachers who will in turn process the grading and mapping of their responses and finally, assist them to fill the Career Choice Forms when they resume in September 2017.    Over 400 students were involved in the this and other exercises.

CHALLENGES:

We had a lot of logistic problems with regard to movement of equipment. My car could not carry the generator, but thank God.  Pastor Mrs.  Julie Inu Umoru, put her space bus and her driver at our disposal for the first two days.  Unfortunately, she was not on ground on the last day of the program owning to an engagement with the State Governor in Benin City. The microphones we hired with two small mega phones could not serve our purpose and so we had to make do with the one brought from Benin by Mr. Ikhane.

 

ACHIEVEMENTS:

We sent out to meet 5 objectives namely;

To guide the students on:

1. Their career paths or choices
2. The danger of cultism
3. How to scan the environment for business opportunities
4. How to be self-reliant through entrepreneurial programs
5. How to be good ambassadors of your family, community and nation

While we can hold our heads high on objectives1, 2 and 5, the same cannot be said of 3 and 4. Perhaps, we didn’t take into cognizance of the prevailing social-economic issues at home and in the country. According to the teachers, the major problem they have to grapple with right now is convincing the students on the benefits of education. Most of them, we are told, see secondary school education as a waste of time. Matters are not helped by the growing numbers of jobless graduates around. This undeniable fact lends credence to their belief in the unfruitfulness of education. Most of the students want to make quick money to alleviate the pervasive sense of poverty around them. They want to go into bricklaying and any other trades that can take them out of the poverty line.

As a matter of fact, we were in a fix as regards the topic of Trade and Entrepreneurship. At the end, we decided to skip it for now.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. The program should be made an annual event to guide the students in their career choices. (An example was given of one of the students who gained admission into Auchi Polytechnic, discovered to his great disappointment that he hadn’t the prerequisite subjects for his choice course even having obtained good grades and paid all the necessary fees).
2. All our people in the academia should be involved at the planning stage
3. Some of the content of prepared materials were too high for secondary students.
4. Sources for materials for secondary school levels
5. We have to get some professional counsellors involved in the program
6. Source some specific counsellors, teachers etc. to meet with the girls
7. We may have to rent better equipment like a generator, speakers, an amplifier, Microphones and other appliances.

APPRECIATION

We want to thank everybody that was involved in the program from the president to all members of the executive and board of trustees’ chairperson. The Okphe-Ukpi and his palace Chiefs, all the members of the forum and our foot soldier at home, Thaddeus Anabor (Gagasco). He ensured everything was in place and gave us his generator throughout the program.