Monitoring
By Chinyere Nwachukwu
Lagos, July 15, 2018 (NAN) Monitoring and supervision are key components needed in achieving academic excellence at all levels of education, says Mr Isaac Kolawole, the Principal, King’s College, Lagos,
Kolawole made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
He spoke on the sideline of the graduation ceremony of the 2017/2018 set of the 107-year-old all boys institution in Lagos.
According to him, the absence of these two components can be the reason for poor performance of students in any academic system.
“Research has shown that supervision and monitoring, especially at both primary and secondary levels of education play a great role in academic excellence.
“As an administrator, I have since identified this and have made this a cardinal focus in my administration.
“On my assumption as principal here, we set up a monitoring committee which ensured that our senior directors are drafted to take up this role by going into the classrooms while teaching and learning are ongoing.
“Ours is not just stock-taking. On the part of our children too, we ensure a total value orientation which is also key.
“In doing this, we ensured change of attitude to their environment, academics and lifestyle and so, there was a shift in the value orientation.
“We also saw the need to sensitise the teachers to their duties, especially in the area of coverage of the syllabus as well as counseling.”
On the issue of dearth of teachers in key subjects, the principal said that a total of six new teachers had already been posted to the college.
He said that the development would go a long way toward improving the learning standard.
“We are awaiting the arrival of more teachers as we have been assured that a few more are on the way.
“We are also aware that the leadership of the Federal Ministry of Education is making combined effort in absorbing some qualified Parent Teacher Association (PTA) teachers; we really want to thank them for that.
“It is only natural that given the right teaching and learning environment, our students will excel, locally or internationally.”
He expressed delight that the academic performance of the students, especially in West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) had improved due to the enforcement of discipline.
The principal advised the graduating students to be creative, adding that attaining success lay in the ability to address and resolve challenges rather than avoid them.
According to him, man can only be creative or create job for himself by identifying challenges and designing strategies or tools to neutralize such challenges.
He noted that such tools or strategies could be in form of providing goods or services for those in need of them.
“On the other hand, anyone who wants to succeed without struggling for it ends up resorting to corruption, which is the bane of our society today,” Kolawole said. (NAN)
CCN/HS/NKO
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Edited by Halima Sheji/Nkechi Okoronkwo
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