By Titilope Ogundele
A few months back, I was at a meeting where a young public secondary school teacher in Oyo State shared his experience on how his boss, the principal of the school, forced him to write answers on the board for students writing WAEC.
The principal had just been transferred to the school and other teachers had reported this young teacher to her. They told her the teacher would not ‘help’ students during exams.
The new principal called this young man and told him to bring his employment letter to school the following day and he did.
While in her office, the principal instructed the teacher to read out the employment letter. She then pointed his attention to the part in the letter which reads that ‘a teacher is expected to carry out other duties as directed by the principal “.
Then she told him to go to the exam hall and write prepared answers on the board for students writing WAEC that day.
The young man begged the principal and told him it was against his belief but she insisted.
All his pleas fell on deaf ears. She insisted that he must write the answers on the board. She monitored him until he carried out her ‘order’.
If all stakeholders in education are pulling down the system, how can we make the system stand?
Parents are paying for malpractice.
Teachers are engaging in malpractice.
Principals are commanding teachers to partake in it.
Representatives from the Ministry of Education also partake in this shameful act.
How then do we build an effective education system?
