A cross section of private secondary schools operating in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital have joined the growing list of stakeholders in Nigeria's education sector, who are worried and calling for the immediate review of the policy of the Federal Government which pegged the age-limit of students expecting to write the coming West African Senior School Certificate Examination and Senior Secondary School Certificate at 18
The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman had last week announced the enforcement of the policy , saying both The West African Examination Council (WAEC) and National Examination Council (NECO) had been instructed not to allow any of the school candidates below 18 years of age to write the examination being conducted by the two bodies while The Joint Admission Matriculation Board JAMB must also do same for UTME
But some of the private schools including Aminat International College Gbonagun Abeokuta, Future Promise Group of Schools Lantoro,Abeokuta and Sunray Paramount Academy Obantoko Abeokuta reacting to the comment in a separate interviews with Edu-Biznews, expressed concern over the fate of students currently in final class of the Senior Secondary School preparing to sit for the examimations who are mostly below the 18 years age-limit
Principal of Aminat International College, Gbonagun , Abeokuta, Alhaji Mikhail Anifowose who described the policy
as a welcome development, however stressed the need for the Federal Government to review the implementation of the policy by giving parents and school owners more time to adjust and prepare themselves.
"The decision was too sudden.
What do we do with our present SS3 expected to resume classes next month September 2024?", he asked rhetorically
"We may not have more than Five candidates to register for WASSCE and NECO Examinations next year 2025 as many of our students are under 18 years.
Very unfortunate", Anifowose lamented
"We wish the Government to revisit the policy and give the Parents and Schools time to adjust"
Similarly, Co-owner of Future Promise Group of Schools, Lantoro, Abeokuta, Chief (Hon.) Funmilayo Ireede-Oginni called for review of the policy, considering the rapid physical growth of girl-child who attained stage of maturity at 12 years and started observing menstrual cycles
She maintained that the students who are writing the coming WASSCE and SSCE should not be denied the opportunity to do so because most of them are below the 18 age-limit
Most of the affected students in the school according to her, are morally and intellectually sound and must not be prevented from writing the Unified Tertiary Institutions Matriculation Examination UTME being conducted by the Joint Admission Matriculation Board (JAMB) to secure admission into Nigerian universities, polytechnics and any of the other tertiary institutions in the country
Also a Principal at Sunray Paramount Academy, Obantoko , Abeokuta who emphasized the need for government to allow the current students who are below 18 to write the examimations, suggested that the implementation of the policy should begin with admission of learners into secondary schools from primary schools
My own view is that,the idea can start from ensuring that underage are not been admitted into JSS classes so with that it will be easy", she advised
Equally teachers in public secondary schools in the state, under the aegis of Academic Staff Union of Secondary School (ASUSS) led by their Chairman, Dr.Felix Agbesanwa called for the immediate policy reversal, saying several of the students will be affected, if the policy is not reversed
Edu-Biznews recalls that the Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar had earlier equally condemned the introduction of the policy, saying such belongs to the stone age
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