UYO
The chairman, State Secondary Education Board (SSEB), Dr Ekaette Ebong Okon, has applauded the concern of the Nigerian Association for Educational Administration and Planning NAEAP), Akwa Ibom State chapter, in the educational development of the state.
Dr Okon stated this recently when the association led by its coordinator, Dr. Princewill Egwuasi, paid her a courtesy call at the board’s headquarters, Idongesit Nkanga Secretariat, Uyo.
She acknowledged that despite the fact that members of the group were drawn from various fields outside the academic environment, they were still seeking ways of improving theeducational wellbeing of Akwa Ibom children and non-indigenes resident in the state.
The chairman of the board explained that for the association to highlight the programmes in which the board had been involved and the things that required the attention of government,signified that they closely followed it activities and have interest in ensuring that pupils and students, succeed in the acquisition of knowledge.
Dr Okon said although the remarks of the association about the board had been on the positive note, negative criticisms on SSEB, would have the board to do what it needed to do to help the sector to improve in service delivery.
She stated that as a body mandated by the government to assist in turning around the fortune of secondary education in AkwaIbom, they work in consonance with the Ministry of Education and other parastatals under the ministry to promote quality on the part of teachers and interest in learning on the part of students.
The SSEB boss noted that the board had succeeded to end prevalent cult activities at Christian Secondary School, Uyo, Uyo High School and Government Technical College, Uyo, by making students realize the purpose for which their parents andguardians enrolled them on school and the purpose for which the state government was investing huge sum of money to run the free education and why they must stay in school to achieve academic excellence.
She told the body that the standard of teaching in secondary schools has drastically improved as the board had insisted on professionalism, stressing that that was the reason the board had to do what it did to ensure that it was only those qualified and having passion for teaching, that were employed during last year’s teachers’ recruitment exercise.
Dr Okon advised the association that the issue of training teachers, was a great need to further build their capacity, but advised that they forward the request through the Ministry of Education to the governor for approval and funding.
The chairman of the board commended NAEAP for the visit,pledged the resolve of the body to work with them to ensure that their objective of promoting quality and accessible education in the state were achieved.
Earlier, the coordinator of the group, Dr Princewill Egwuasi, said the association was a body which comprises all professionally trained educational administrators which membership could be through any of the six associations.
Dr Egwuasi said it was upon that that Dr Okon was being visited as a pioneer student – member of the association during her days as a Ph.D. student in Educational Management and Planning in the University of Uyo.
He told the board’s chairman that the visit was apt as it offered them the opportunity to meet with SSEB’s vested with the responsibility of managing secondary education in Akwa Ibom State. He said the association was aware of the achievements recorded by the board such as ensuring a conducive learning environment in schools across the state, the recruitment of teachers into the school system and the establishment and implementation of the goals for the setting up of secondary schools in the state, among others.
The state coordinator of NAEAP, requested the registration of the chairman with the association and recognition of all registered staff of the board on the timely promotion sponsorship to the association’s national conference.
Egwuasi called for effective collaboration between the association and the board in the training and retraining of teachers, refresher courses and organisation of educational administrative seminars and workshop.
NAEA also solicited the assistance and support of the board for the inauguration of the executive of NAEAP in the state in March.
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