The number of teachers who walked out of classrooms and onto picket lines to demand higher pay, smaller class sizes and increased funding for K-12 students was unprecedented, according to education historians.
The movements in places like Arizona, Kentucky, Oklahoma and West Virginia galvanized educators around the country, prompting thousands of them to run for office in the 2018 midterm election.
RELATED CONTENTChicago Teachers Mount First Charter Strike
But as 2019 approaches, teachers are setting up to ring in the new year by continuing to wrestle with the same old issues.
Already some 31,000 educators in Los Angeles, the second-biggest school district in the country, are planning to walk out on Jan. 10 after the Los Angeles Unified District and the United Teachers Los Angeles failed to reach an agreement over issues including pay, class size, testing and charter schools.
65-year retirement age for teachers- Mallam Adamu
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, Adamu made this known during a public hearing on the need to insulate teachers from the retirement age for public servants organised by the House of Reps Joint Committee on Basic Education and Public Service.
Adamu informed the committee that the Nigerian Union of Teachers had submitted the new retirement age proposal to the ministry and the National Assembly for approval.
Soyinka hails Northern teachers
Soyinka, who spoke in a keynote address at the grand finale of the Lafarge National Literacy Competition (LNLC) held at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos yesterday, said he was glad seeing pupils from some northern states in the finals of the competition.
He urged the teachers to keep doing their best to educate children in their care, calling for support from other parts of the country.
Soyinka said: “I was so delighted as I moved up here and I saw representatives of the beleaguered states in this nation. I saw Nasarawa; I saw Gombe and I saw Kano. These states and others, including Kaduna and Benue, are at the forefront of the literacy struggle because they confront one of the most determined enemies of reading; of literacy; of enlightenment that we have ever experienced in this nation. And it is a battle, which is still ongoing. And when I see representatives, especially young representatives of those states in a kind of event that has to do with literature, literacy, education generally, I say to myself the battle not only is not lost but will be won.
NATIONAL SCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAMME TO BECOME AFRICA’S LARGEST BY END OF 2018, SAYS VP OSINBAJO
* Over 9m primary pupils benefiting in 26 states already
* Over $183million has been invested so far
* 95,422 cooks and over 100,000 smallholder farmers benefitting
He added, “it is becoming clearer that the 21st Century will be defined by knowledge and skills. The nations that are best able to present the most knowledgeable and most skilful citizens will prevail in commerce, in science and technology and of course, will enjoy the greatest prosperity and the longevity to enjoy the prosperity. Nations that do not invest enough to produce the required level of talent and skills will be left behind. A farther distance than ever before in the history of mankind.”
By the end of 2018, with the number of new States in the country joining the National Homegrown School Feeding Programme, it is set to become the largest school-feeding programme in Africa, says Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN. He stated this in Tunisia, where he delivered a keynote address at the closing ceremony of the 20th Annual Global Child Nutrition Forum held at Four Seasons hotel in Tunis, stating that the programme “has been by all accounts, a remarkable success.” Speaking on the philosophy underlying the Programme, Prof Osinbajo told the 353 delegates from 9 countries, which include experts in the nutrition industry, United Nations officials from World Food Programme, Global Child Nutrition Fund, the World Bank and stakeholders that “Nigeria took the decision to embark on a school feeding programme as an important part of our human capital development agenda, by tackling the broader issues of eradication of poverty, food and nutrition security, and increasing school enrollment.”
WAEC to publish names of schools, candidates, invigilators and supervisors caught aiding and abetting examination malpractice
The committee, which is the highest decision-making organ of WAEC on examination-related matters in Nigeria, made the recommendation to WAEC, ANCOPSS and all the ministries of education in the 36 states of the federation, in a statement issued at the end of its 66th meeting in Lagos.
According to the statement, the committee had received reports on cases of irregularity, special and clemency arising from the conduct of the WASSCE for both private candidates and school candidates in 2017 and 2018 during the meeting.
Employ more qualified teachers
Adediran said this in an interview with our correspondent in Osogbo on the sidelines of programme organised by the union to mark the 2018 World Teachers Day.
The union leader said that some teachers had retired from schools and that new ones should be employed to fill the vacancies left behind but he advised that only qualified teachers should be engaged.
NUT wants teachers’ retirement age at 65
The Nigerian Union of Teachers has called on the Federal Government to review teacher’s retirement age in the country to 65 years.
The NUT President, Mr Muhammed Idris, stated this in Abuja on Thursday at a news conference to mark the 2018 World Teachers’ Day, calling for a review from the present 60 years.
The theme of the conference was, “The right to education means the right to a qualified teacher.”
The NUT president, who noted that it was important retain qualified and experienced teachers in the system, called for an urgent review of retiring teachers annually without providing corresponding recruitments to fill the vacant positions.
Teachers In Prison For Using Cane On Students
Residents of Okota area in Lagos expressed shock and rained curses on a man, Chief Enekwa, for ordering the arrest of three teachers including the school proprietress, for using cane as a corrective measure on his two children.
The incident happened at a popular school known as Altitude International School located at Ebie Street in Ago, Okota area of Lagos.
P.M.EXPRESS reports that the police at Gender Section of the Command arrested and charged the proprietress and three teachers before court for allegedly using cane as a corrective measure on the two kids in the school.
The suspects were Alhaja Romota Abass, 61, Obialor Nkechika, 37, Wale Emmanuel, 26 and Robert Emmanuel, 36.
It was gathered that Chief Enekwa, the father of the two pupils aged between 8 and 10, went to the police and reported that the teachers caned his children against his wish and he wanted them to be arrested and prosecuted.
The police then went to the school, arrested the owner of the school, Mrs Abass, three other teachers and detained them at the Command for child abuse.
They were later charged before Ikeja Magistrates court for the alleged offence.
They pleaded not guilty.
The prosecutor, Mr. Benson Emuerhi did not oppose their bail condition.
Thus, the Presiding Magistrate, Mrs. O Sule-Amzat granted them bail in the sum of N20,000 with two sureties in like sum.
They were remanded in prison custody pending when they will perfect their bail condition.
The matter was adjourned till 12 July, 2018.
When P.M.EXPRESS contacted Chief Enekwa who resided at 34 Mukandasi Street in Ago, Okota, Lagos, he declined to make comments but claimed that he had withdrawn his children from the school and wanted justice.
However, the incident had attracted so much reactions as the residents insisted that Chief Enekwa had a hidden agenda to blackmail the school management over the school fees of the victims. One of the residents was heard saying that he did so in order to extort money from the management and was using the police to execute his plan.
Envoy wants more Nigerian teachers in Tanzania
The High Commissioner of Tanzania to Nigeria, Muhidin Moweto, on Thursday requested the deployment of more Nigerian teachers in the country.
Moweto, who made the request shortly after presenting his Letter or Credence to President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, also expressed gratitude to the Federal Government for posting 41 teachers to Tanzania under the Technical Aid Corps programme of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The envoy underscored the presence and positive roles of Nigerian firms in his country, particularly in the manufacturing and banking sectors.
Full article : http://punchng.com/envoy-wants-more-nigerian-teachers-in-tanzania/
Northern govs will sack teachers after winning 2019 election – El Rufai
Governor Nasir El Rufai of Kaduna State has said that the educational reform, which took place in Kaduna, will also be carried out in other northern states after the 2019 elections.
It would be recalled that the Kaduna State Government sacked about 22,000 teachers for incompetency in 2017, as part of the efforts to reform the education sector in the state. The action had attracted much criticism from various quarters in the sector.
El Rufai, who was the guest lecturer at the 4th Distinguished Guest Lecture of the University of Medical Science, Ondo town, Ondo State, said the decision to sack incompetent teachers was taken by all the northern state governors, but most of them could not carry it out for the fear of losing the next governorship election scheduled for 2019.
Full Article : http://punchng.com/northern-govs-will-sack-teachers-after-winning-2019-election-el-rufai/