KEY POINTS

• Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, announced that new criteria will be developed to exempt gifted children.
• Prof. Mamman promised support to upgrade the Federal Government Academy, Suleja.
• Nigeria’s new educational strategy is to focus on practical skills development.

The Nigerian government is still in the process of making an exception especially for gifted children below 18 years to write other vital Nigeria exams including the WASSCE and NECO respectively.

This was made known by the Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman while on a visit to the Federal Government Academy, Suleja which houses a special school for gifted children.

Although the current education policy bars students from sitting for these tests until they attain a certain age, few children are capable of being ready for the tests at an earlier age because of their unique abilities.

For his part, Prof. Mamman said that new criteria could be developed to assess and exclude the likes of such a student from the age requirement.

“We are going to come up with characteristics for what we will refer to as ‘gifted children’,” he stated, highlighting the fact that the new system of categorization of students for the exemption would only permit special students who meet certain standards.

Renovations for the resumption of the National School for the Gifted

In the course of the tour, Prof. Mamman also informed that the Federal Government Academy, Suleja also known as National School for the Gifted will resume two weeks later.

There have been some constructions at the school hence the government has shifted the students’ back-to-school date from September 8 to September 18.

In this regard, the minister emphasised that a school must be prepared in all aspects before the learners can continue learning in a proper environment.

“We cannot have these young children here when there is work ongoing. The plumbing showers, water and other facilities must be in good shape,” Prof. Mamman said.

Response to the current state of the Federal Government Academy

Vanguard reported that Prof. Mamman looked worried during the interview, stating that the academy does not look like a school befitting according to his template.

He stressed that to achieve its mission of developing the best in Nigeria as an academic institution, the academy needs overhauling.

‘‘This is the only school of its type in the entire nation which aims at grouping students who show aptitude and capabilities,’ he noted. ‘But maintenance has been a problem, and what we have seen so far in terms of its maintenance alone does not depict the type of school that it should be’.

Prof. Mamman also reemphasized its determined effort to upgrade the school to the standard that it should be.

“The general state of schools in Nigeria has worsened, and it is even worse in many states at the lower tiers of government. Hence, effort must be promptly made to get schools to be environment-friendly for students, instead of having a feeling that they would like to leave school as early as possible,” he expounded.

The minister also stressed the need for skills development in the new direction of education in Nigeria. He applauded the academy for creating a new ‘skills development and training college’ to build students into professional work and vocational training while in school.

“From the foundation level to senior secondary schools, students must be equipped with skills that would help make their lives more productive. In this way, even if they do not further their education, they will have adequate skills/trades to fall back on,” Mamman concluded.