2,835 graduates jostle for 200 NDDC foreign scholarships
Addressing journalists on Monday at the Rivers State University, ICT Centre, where the tests were conducted, the Director, Education, Health and Social Services of the NDDC, Mr. Goshua Okejoto, said the choice of electronic examination was to enable the Commission to shortlist the right candidates for the scholarship scheme.
Okejoto said the scheme, which was introduced in 2010, was meant to equip graduates of Niger-Delta origin with the relevant training and skills for effective participation in the local content programme of the Federal Government.
He explained that only candidates, who had completed the mandatory one-year national youth service and secured admission into foreign universities, were eligible to participate in the selection process.
Encourage study of Mathematics in varsities.
Calling on government to introduce a policy that would encourage young Nigerians to study Mathematics, Olayinka, who spoke during the 75th Interdisciplinary Discourse of the UI Postgraduate School, said that proper career counseling was necessary in secondary schools to guide and expose pupils to the opportunities available in studying the subject at university level.
The Guest Lecturer at the event and former President of the African Mathematics Union, Prof Aderemi Kuku, also called on the Federal Government to stop the brain drain in Mathematics, Science and Technology.
Rewards don’t improve school attendance
It’s the back-to-school season – and many young people may be feeling reluctant about returning for the start of another academic year. Many schools there are deliberate attempts to boost attendance by giving rewards, school prizes and commendations to those who have the best records for not missing any lessons.
But do such prizes really change behaviour?
According to a large-scale study of secondary school students in California in the US, awards for good school attendance seem to make no significant difference – and in some circumstances, could make absenteeism worse.
The study, published by the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in Massachusetts, examined the effect of rewards schemes on more than 15,000 students in 14 school districts in California.
‘Demotivating’
Researchers, including Carly Robinson, found that if prizes were promised in advance, it made no difference to whether pupils attended.
If the rewards were retrospective, in recognition of high levels of attendance, it seemed to have a negative impact on the winners’ future school attendance.
Full article: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-45326487