Nigerian Army is set to reposition Command Schools towards improving the standard of education in the system.
This was disclosed during the second edition of workshop for teachers and stakeholders in Nigerian Army Command Schools held at the Nigerian Resource Centre Abuja.
In his address, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, who was represented by Commander, Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC), Major General Rashidi Yusuf said that the workshop is very timely given his desire to improve the quality of education in Nigerian Army Schools. “Inadequate and inappropriate education in any country could lead to stagnation, retrogression and social ills, such as crimes and occasionally violent extremism” he said. He added that sound education is the driver of advancement at personal, state, regional, and national levels, thus the provision of sound and quality education is critical to solving most of the county’s problems.
Gen Buratai re-iterated the fact that, education is the cornerstone of national growth and development, thus societies aspiring to develop should invest more in the education of its teeming populace as opined by Carol Ann Tomlinson “The central job of school is to maximize the capacity of each student”.
The theme of the workshop which is “Towards Improving the Standard of Education in Nigerian Army Command Schools” was carefully selected to ensure that stakeholders are constantly kept abreast of the current issues involved in the effective management of schools in the 21st century.
This makes it imperative for all hands to be on deck to ensure the provision of quality education to the youths who are the leaders of tomorrow. More so, this informed the decision of the COAS in giving approval for the establishment of more command secondary schools in some states of the Federation.
He further commended the Nigerian Army Resource Centre for conducting a thorough empirical research and recommendations based on gap analysis from the survey into the operations of NA Command Schools.
He said it was as a result this in-depth analysis that gave rise to the conduct of this workshop aimed at improving on the quality of education in NA Command Schools with a view to providing solutions to the identified challenges.
In a related development, the Director General, Nigerian Army Resource Centre, (NARC) Maj Gen Johnny Hamakim, stated that one of the statutory responsibilities of the Nigerian Army Education Corps (NAEC), is to provide educational services to Nigerian Army.
In addition, he said that the aim of setting up Nigerian Army Command Schools was to provide qualitative and affordable education for children and wards of service personnel as well as civilians. According to him, there are 32 Command Children Schools (CCS) and 30 Command Secondary Schools (CSS) in Nigeria.
Gen Hamakim used the medium to commend the COAS who has ensured that these Schools are indeed affordable by drastically reducing the school fees while at the same time, improving the quality of education.
The Director General maintained that Command Schools were known over the years for high standard of discipline and as citadel of learning and knowledge acquisition. However, he acknowledged that these standards were observed to be gradually eroding as the quality of education given to students in these schools had declined.
At the end of the event, the Acting Commander Nigerian Army Education Corps, Brig General LF Abdullah, opined that the significance and objectives of the workshop had been realized. He also re-emphasized that practical steps must be taken to improve on the level of discipline in NA Command Schools which is a key to academic excellence.
High point of the event was the presentation of certificates to the participants for their participation. Present at the workshop were: the representative of the Chief of Army Staff, Major General Rashidi Yusuf, the representative of the Honourable Minister of Education, Mr Aisuedion Abel Akhere and the Director General, Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Major General Johnny Hamakim. Also, the Commissioners for Education, Zamfara, Sokoto, Kano, Katsina and Imo States, Commandants and teachers of Nigerian Army Command Secondary Schools.
