Cornerstone Boosts Teaching of Maths, English in 10 Schools with 2,000 Books

  In line with its 2017 CSR project tagged ‘Bookathon’, Cornerstone Insurance Plc Foundation has donated a total of 2,000 English Language and mathematics textbooks to 10 junior and senior secondary schools in Lagos, Rivers State and Abuja. Each school got a total of 200 books.

According to the Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications Group, Cordelia Ekeocha, the initiative was aimed at equipping the schools’ libraries with basic academic and educational materials, as well as boosting students’ academic performances in Mathematics and English Language exams at state and national levels.

On the rationale behind the books donation, she said: “Research shows that the current economic crisis in Nigeria has had an observable negative impact on the education sector; as many state governments continue with drastic budget cuts on basic infrastructure in both junior and senior secondary schools.

STG moves to reward science teachers, pupils

  Get your Chemistry, Physics and Biology teachers to register for FREE at www.assppaa.com  You and your teachers start competing in Science Teachers' Game and earn Student Basic Points and Teacher Basic Points. Cash prizes are up for grabs for the highest scoring contestants. Follow Science Teachers' Game on social media for more updates. Watch out for the weekly Science Teachers' Game radio show coming soon. Nigeria's biggest educational competition is brought to you by Mr Labss and supported by Fidelity Bank, Konga, IVM and Systemtech.

King's College Graduates 551 Students

   King’s College, Lagos recently held its 2017 prize-giving and valedictory service, where it graduated about 551 students.

The programme, which was well attended by guests, parents, staff, old boys and the representative of the minister of education, saw the presentation of prizes to outstanding students of the college and the presentation of the outgoing graduands to the assembly by the registrar.

In his farewell remarks, the outgoing Principal, Mr. Oluseyi Thomas said the college was celebrating its graduands for making the school proud, as it focuses on the primary business of educating the Nigerian child, adding that it was also to reward their excellent performance and contributions in the last one year.

He thanked the students, staff, parents and other stakeholders for the support he enjoyed during his two years stewardship at the college.

VCs, ASUU reject 120 cut-off mark for varsity admission

   SOME Vice-Chancellors and the Academic Staff Union of Universities have rejected the decision of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board to peg admission cut-off mark at 120 for universities and 100 for polytechnics, monotechnics and colleges of education.

ASUU said the action, which it described as a “sad policy decision,” was in tandem “with the dream of the present government to destroy public universities in the country.”
H
HMost of the vice-chancellors our correspondents interviewed on the issue maintained that they would not lower admission standards in their respective varsities.

The vice-chancellors stated that the decision would add no value to the nation’s university system.

For instance, in a statement issued by the Vice-Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Prof. Idowu Olayinka, on the issue and released by his Media Assistant, Mr. Sunday Saanu, on Thursday,  the premier university stated that it would never admit any candidate that scored 120 in the UTME.

Mixed reactions trail varsity admission’s cut-off mark

  Mixed reactions have trailed the decision of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, to peg the minimum cut-off mark for admissions into universities at 120.

Most Nigerians decried the reduction in the cut-off describing it as `too low a requirement for admission’ into the university.

Mr. Ettu Ahmed, an Educationist, said that the pegging of the cut-off to 120 would encourage laziness and lower the standard of education in the country.

“Rather than lower it to 120, JAMB management should have used 180 as the cut-off, judging from the number of those who scored 200 and above.

“JAMB’s decision to reduce the cut-off to such a mark could have a multiplier effect on the already lower standard of education in the country,’’ he said.

Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo appoints 14 new resident Electoral Commissioners

  The Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo has appointed 14 new Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the 2019 General elections.
Among the 14 appointees was Hussaini Halilu Pai of the FCT who was re-appointed.
The new appointees are:
Prof. Godwill Obioma (Abia)
James Lorliam Apam (Benue)
Dr. Nwachukwu Orji (Ebonyi)
Dr. Iloh Joseph Valentine Chuks (Enugu)
Dr. Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda (Plateau)
Umar Ibrahim (Taraba)
Mr. Emeka Ononamadu Joseph (Imo)
Obo O. Effanga (Cross River)
Prof. Francis Chuckwemeka Ezeounu (Anambra)
Dr. Briyai O. Frankland (Bayelsa)
Ibrahim Abdullahi (Adamawa)
Agboke Mutiu Olaleke (Ogun) and
Alhaji Ahmad Makama (Bauchi).
“These appointees have been confirmed by the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and therefore, the appointments are with immediate effect,” Adebiyi said.
The RECs also have a five-year renewable tenure, same as the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Obafemi Awolowo University Denies Increasing Tuition Fees

  The management of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, has said that it was not planning to increase its tuition fee to N55,700.





The chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, University of Ibadan Chapter, Dr. Deji Omole, was recently quoted as claiming that no fewer than 38 universities across Nigeria had jerked up their fees.


He reportedly named OAU as one of the schools affected by the increment.


In a press statement on Tueday, the OAU Public Relations Officer, Abiodun Olarewaju, explained that the tuition fee remained as increased three years ago.


Olarewaju said, “The attention of the authorities of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, has been drawn to a news item that ’38 Varsities increase tuition fees’, where OAU was listed among the universities that have increased their tuition fees.

Nigerian Universities Increase Tuition Fees

  The Nation reports that at least 38 universities across the country have increased their tuition fees due to poor funding by federal and state governments.




The Chairman of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), University of Ibadan Chapter, Dr. Deji Omole, stated this in a statement in Abuja on Monday.

 -University of Lagos (UNILAG) N14, 500 to N63, 500

-Ahmadu Bello University N27, 000 to N41, 00

 -University of Nigeria  N60, 450 to N66, 950

- Obafemi Awolowo University N19, 700 to N55,700 .

– Nnamdi Azikiwe University N20, 100 to N65,920

- Bayero University, Kano, N26,000 to N40,000

- University of Abuja N39,300 to N42,300

- Usman Danfodiyo University  N32,000 to N41,000.

The statement which assessed the two years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, lamented that the government had made Nigerians poorer.

Omole said the public education was not taken seriously because “children of the rich and those in high offices” do not attend school in Nigeria.

The latest increment might be attributed to poor funding by the federal and state governments as ASUU poorly rated the President Muhammadu Buhari in the area of funding of university education.

ASUU also noted that it would be difficult for any Nigeria university to compete globally due to inadequate budgetary allocation to the educational sector.

Frank Edoho, Host Of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire Announces The End Of The Show

 Who wants to be a Millionaire has been hit by Recession I guess!..This is sad and I pray they get another sponsor soon...

Why Nigerian universities are socially irrelevant – Okebukola

  A former Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Prof. Peter Okebukola, said the country’s 153 universities were not socially relevant due to inadequate funding.

The don said this on Thursday at the third Distinguished Lecture of the Mountain Top University, Ogun State.

Speaking on the theme, “More investment, more harvest: Agenda for enhancing social responsibility of Nigerian universities,” Okebukola said his arrival at the conclusion that poor funding was the major factor responsible for Nigerian universities’ irrelevance to the country was due to his findings after a research carried out among them.

During the research, the don said he discovered that the country’s universities were doing “amazing things” despite operating on a shoestring.

He said, “I keep hearing people from all over the country and the world that our universities are doing nothing to the society, that they are not proffering solutions to societal problems like food insecurity, energy inadequacy, insecurity and so on. Some are asking, ‘why are our universities not solving societal problems?’ This criticism is too much.

“I was challenged and I carried out a research. I discovered that saying Nigerian universities are not doing anything in the society is not true. The truth is that good things are happening in our universities and the conclusion of the research is that our universities, based on the level of funding they are getting, are delivering very well and if we increase the level of resources available to them, they will deliver more and be more socially relevant.”

UI suspends union activities, asks students to vacate campus

  An emergency meeting of the Senate of the University of Ibadan was convened on Tuesday where it was decided that students’ union activities on the campus had been suspended until further notice.

Students of the institution were also asked to vacate their halls of residence before 6pm on Tuesday after they disobeyed the order to do so on Monday.

The decision followed the Monday closure of the school by the vice chancellor, Prof. Idowu Olayinka, after students staged a protest, blocking the busy Mokola-Ojoo road, thereby causing gridlock for several hours.

The students had given the school management an ultimatum to constitute a Students Welfare Board and set up a committee to look into the use of electric-powered cooking appliances in the school hostels and issuance of identity cards before their first semester examination. The examination was scheduled to have started in June but was postponed until July 17, 2017.

DG: New National Minimum Wage will Determine Increase in NYSC Members’ Allowance

  The Director General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier Sulaiman Zakari Kazaure, has said that an increase in the allowance of youth corps members in the country will be determined by the introduction of a new national minimum wage for workers.
“The NYSC allowance is determined by the national minimum wage. We are waiting on the government to take a decision on the new wage structure before we know what to do,” he said.

FUTA reinstates suspended VC, appoints new one

  The Governing Council of the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State, has reinstated the suspended Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Adebiyi Daramola.

The council had also appointed Prof. Joseph Adeola Fuwape as the seventh substantive VC of the university.

In a statement issued by the Head, Media and Protocol of the university, Mr. Adegbenro Adebanjo, the Council, presided over by the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council, Senator Joseph Waku, ratified Fuwape’s appointment at its special meeting held on Thursday, May 18, 2017.

Adebanjo said the letter of appointment was personally signed by Senator Waku and Prof. Fuwape’s appointment takes effect from Wednesday, May 24, 2017, adding that it would be for a single term of five years.

JAMB releases UTME results

  The first set of the ongoing Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination has been released.

This is just as the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board asked candidates in Ogbomoso to print notifications of their new examination centres from their email addresses.

The Head, Public Affairs, JAMB, Mr. Fabian Benjamin, in a statement on Tuesday said that the results of 742, 906 candidates who sat for the examination on Saturday and Monday was released within 24 hours.

“Candidates are to check their email addresses or visit the board’s website for the results. A total of 742, 906 candidates sat for the examination on Saturday and Monday. Another 401,292 candidates are expected to join them today, raising the number to 1, 144, 198 out of 1, 718,425.”

According to Benjamin, the candidates, who have been posted to nearby towns such as Saki, Ago-Amodu and Ibadan are to sit for the examination between Thursday and Saturday at the new locations.

JAMB reschedules UTME in Ogbomoso

  Candidates seeking to sit for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation at the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, on Monday were disappointed as students of the school prevented them from gaining access to the two centres located within the university. Our correspondent learnt these were the only centres in Ogbomoso.

This is just as the Head, Public Affairs, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, Mr. Fabian Benjamin, said that the candidates were likely to sit for the examination in Ilorin, Kwara State.

It was learnt that students of the institution had, as early as 7am, barricaded the gates of the university, vowing that the UTME would not hold until academic activities in the school resumed. The students also prevented teaching and non-teaching staff of the institution from entering the school

Efforts to speak to the school registrar, Jacob Agboola, was not successful but a member of staff of the school, who did not want his name in print because he is not authorised to speak on behalf of the management, said the authority of the school had a meeting with JAMB officials where an alternative was decided.

Celebrating Opeyemi Odutemowo, the 29-year old Nigerian Lady with a Ph.D in Nuclear Physics

                                 
Congratulations are in order for Opeyemi S. Odutemowo who just bagged a Ph.D degree in Nuclear Physics from the University of Pretoria, South Africa.

Opeyemi, a graduate of Applied physics (Geophysics) from the University of Lagos, attended Mayflower School, Ikenne.



After her undergraduate program, she proceeded to University of Pretoria where she bagged her M.Sc and Ph.D degrees in the field of Physics.

With her thesis focusing on the effects of fission product bombardment on glassy carbon, she aims to proffer solutions that will help generate cleaner and safer electricity in Africa.

 

Well done and congratulations Opeyemi!

UNIMAID bomb blasts delay UTME

  Multiple suicide bomb attacks at the University of Maiduguri, on Saturday, delayed the commencement of the Computer-Based Test for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, candidates at centres in the university.

The News Agency of Nigeria reported that three suicide bombers, early today detonated their explosives, at the gate of the University killing a security guard and injuring one soldier.

NAN reports that the six test centres in the university recorded low turn out following the incident.

Mrs. Kaka John, a JAMB staff, said that the exam did not commence on time because of the early morning bomb blast, which made many candidates stay away.

UTME: Candidates, parents decry extra charges, centre allocation

  Less than 48 hours to the commencement of the 2017 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, complaints of extortion, posting to distant centres and complications in printing e-slips have emerged.

Candidates who spoke with our correspondent on Thursday lamented the cancellation of their mock examination centres, payment of extra charges for corrections on their examination forms and difficulty in printing exam slips.

This is just as the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board said that slips could be printed from its website, from candidates’ email and at computer-based test centres/cyber cafes. The board added that some mock examinations centres were cancelled because “they gave us wrong information.’’

Registration for the 2017 UTME ended on Friday with 1,736,571 candidates, including 321 who are visually-impaired.

Illegality of Covenant University students’ suspension

  The management of Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State has suspended about 200 undergraduates of the faith-based institution for missing an Easter ‘Youth Alive’ programme. The school had earlier organised a four-day Easter retreat for the students and had also made attendance mandatory. However, while some of the students were fed up – for various reasons – with going for church services in the morning and evening for the four uninterrupted days, they couldn’t but miss some days out of the retreat. Surprisingly and unfortunately for them, they have been punished through suspension by the school management. Some were suspended for a year.

Suspension is a very serious punishment. As serious as it is, however, there are instances where it will and must necessarily be applied on erring students. Yet, the means by which students are suspended from school must be reasonable and must be within the confines of our laws.

Four students arrested over ‘annual tradition’ of molesting schoolgirls

   The police have arrested four male students of Ireti Grammar School, Falomo, Lagos, for allegedly molesting some schoolgirls.

According to PUNCH, final year female students of Falomo Senior High School are usually assaulted on the day of their last examination.

The act is said to have become a yearly tradition.

Michale Matthew, a witness quoted by the newspaper, said she saw a boy trying to force himself on a girl while the others boys were cheering.

She said she later discovered that the boys were students of Ireti Grammar School.

“I open my car in disbelief and shout at the boys to break it up while shouting at my security and the second driver to assist me. I walk towards them and as I make my way towards them, I see another group and this time they have cornered one of the girls who fell while running from them,” Matthew said.