BY BOLA OLAJUWON
STAKEHOLDERS in the education sector have called for multiple intervention strategies to arrest the exploitative private schools and tertiary institutions, charging exorbitant school fees and employing unqualified teachers and lecturers among other sharp practices.
Parents have in recent times complained about the exorbitant charges by private schools, which are mostly known for employing unqualified teachers. Also, most teachers in private schools’ dread holiday periods because of many proprietors’ penchant for not paying salaries.
The financial strain usually forces many private school teachers to rely on their savings, take on part-time work or seek loans to cover basic expenses.
School resumption week is also a difficult time for private school owners, who are struggling to hold on to their teaching staff. Parents and their wards are also concerned over quality education, which may be at risk.
In a report last September, a record number of private schools in the country pay their teachers a monthly salary, which is below the minimum wage of N70,000, a pay that the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and other trade unions have been calling for a review, owing to increase in fuel prices and other costs of living.
Already, Nigerians are battling to keep their heads above the soaring living costs, which have continued to escalate. The private school teachers are also not allowed to unionise to fight for their rights.
Respondents, in a survey conducted on Tuesday by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan, Abeokuta and Ilorin, believed governments at all levels should lead the rescue mission by providing effective regulatory frameworks to guide schools’ operations and discourage the sector’s identified lapses.
Parents: Why We Are Sending Children To Private Schools
In Abeokuta, a parent, Jude Okonkwo, said he preferred his children in private schools because of the assumed poor standard and quality of education in public schools.
However, Okonkwo, who did not give the number of his children, said he had forcefully withdrawn some of them from the schools because of unaffordable school fees.
Another parent, Hakeem Jimoh, said his children had been sent back home no fewer than five times since school resumed in September over non-payment of school fees.
“This is embarrassing to me and especially, my children; it has affected them psychologically as other students look down on them in school,” he said.
Jimoh blamed the situation on the insensitivity and selfishness of school owners for always prioritising profits over other considerations.
NUT Secretary flays Exorbitant Fees
The Secretary, Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Ogun Chapter, Mr. Samson Oyelere, regretted that the exorbitant fees did not reflect the standards and quality of education provided for students.
He noted that many of the schools would go on to employ unqualified teachers, whom they pay meagre salaries to maximise profits.
“It is worrisome that significant private school teachers lack the requisite qualifications, particularly the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) licence.
“The TRCN should ensure that schools observe due diligence in the employment of teachers so that only teachers with necessary qualifications and certifications will be allowed to teach the students.
“To ensure that good standards are maintained, I recommend that TRCN, in conjunction with the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS), renew their synergy and streamline the appointment of teachers in private schools.
“This collaboration will help to ensure that only qualified and certified teachers are employed in private schools, thereby maintaining good standards of education in Nigeria,” Oyelere said.
Parent blames govt’s inability to match demand for quality education
Meanwhile, another parent, Mrs. Rosemary Adeleke, said with the country’s developmental challenge taking its toll on public education, more parents are finding solace in private schools. She traced the exploitation of parents by private school owners to the inability of the government to match the growing demand for quality education with human resources and infrastructural development.
According to her, many private schools have derailed their primary goal of complementing public education, noting the unchecked issues of exorbitant school fees and regular upward review of fees.
Adeleke criticised the situation whereby some private schools extort parents in the name of school fees, while not giving quality service to complement the fees.
She said this had forced many parents to prefer low-cost private schools to meet their wards’ educational demands.
Also, a civil servant, Mr. Kayode Adebiyi, condemned the proliferation of substandard institutions without proper checks from education ministries and relevant government agencies.
He lamented that many substandard private schools put children in unsafe buildings and classrooms, not minding that such buildings were not originally designed or conducive for academic purposes.
“The use of unqualified teachers and administrative staff is another area to look at as well as inadequate provision of infrastructural facilities and examination malpractice.
“These are some issues that are retarding or staining the good efforts of few private institutions, and these issues need to be addressed to improve the performances of private schools in Nigeria,” said Adebiyi.
A school proprietor in Ibadan, Mrs. Bimbo Amole, said the matter should concern families, communities and governments at all levels.
She alleged that some past governments helplessly watched public structures and institutions collapse, leaving some others in a dangerous state of coma with little or no hope of being revived.
Amole, who commended the roles of private schools in rescuing the battered image of education, however, said much still needed to be done.
NAPPS Chairman: Economic Downturn Responsible For Fees Hike
Meanwhile, the Chairman of NAPPS, Abeokuta Branch, Mr. Sipeolu Rowland, blamed the hike in school fees on the general downturn in the economy. According to him, prices of goods and services have continued to soar.
He added that multiple taxations had compounded the challenges, making school administration capital-intensive as proprietors bear unnecessary costs.
Rowland listed the taxes as registration fees, renewal fees, mobile signage fees, billboard fees, business premises fees, the Land Use Act fees and local government levy.
The chairman, who complained that many youths had continued to shy away from teaching as a career, noted the situation had forced schools to employ untrained teachers.
“You will discover that many unwholesome things that happen in the schools are traceable to some teachers because they lack requisite teaching background and skills, he said.
Rowland, therefore, urged the government to relax or consolidate the taxes to reduce the running cost of the schools for a downward review of school fees.
He also urged the government to assist private school proprietors in facilitating financial loans at low interest rates.
Proprietor Urges School Owners To Earn Parents’ Trust
The Proprietor of Al-Hiklas Group of Schools, Ojoo, Ibadan, Mr. Tajudeen Omidokun, affirmed that private school owners must strive to earn parents’ trust by providing the required standards.
Omidokun warned that schools charging expensive fees and prioritising profit-making over providing required education standards would eventually lose the trust of parents. According to him, this will lead to the parents withdrawing their children from such schools, and with time, the schools will begin to lose relevance in society.
Varsity Don Seeks Tighter Monitoring
A respondent, Prof. Julius Ademokoya of the Special Education Department, University of Ibadan, challenged the government to ensure tighter monitoring of tertiary institutions.
According to him, the government should know if private tertiary schools have what it takes to employ quality lecturers who can positively impact their students.
“If the Federal Government (FG) refuses to take drastic action now, Nigeria’s education will be worse than we have within the next five years,” he said.
Ademokoya expressed sadness that government-owned schools were also guilty of exorbitant fees, accommodation, and other unnecessary charges.
“What is even worrisome is what they now call ‘Acceptance Fees’ by the government and privately-owned schools. As if that is not enough, accommodation fees in some private schools are as high as N300,000 to N400,000, and short-distant intra-campus transportation may cost nothing less than N500 per student,” he said.
A parent, Mrs. Aishat Kamaldeen, described the situation whereby private schools charge exorbitantly only to employ unqualified teachers, paying them meagre salaries, as a betrayal of trust. She said the same thing applied to institutions collecting expensive boarding school fees and not feeding the boarding students well.
According to Kamaldeen, parents enrol their wards in private schools because they want the best and trust school owners to justify the fees by providing quality education. She, however, regretted the disappointing experiences of most parents, seeing a situation that could negatively affect the nation’s standard of education if not attended to.
She encouraged parents to promptly address such developments in Parent Teacher Association (PTA) meetings or other available avenues.
“Not saying it out will only encourage cheating”, she said.
