By Amos Aar
THE UNIVERSAL Basic Education Commission (UBEC) in collaboration with the Benue State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), has trained one thousand, two hundred and fifty-four thousand (1,254) staff within the past weeks, using the 2021-2022 UBEC Training funds in line with the mandate of the commission.
The SUBEB Acting Executive Chairman, Mr Mzaga Iorhemba, who disclosed this Thursday at the closing ceremony of a 4-day workshop in Makurdi on the theme: “Strengthening Teachers’ English proficiency” said, those trained include 50 School Support Officers, 100 Head Teachers and 1058 Teachers on School Based Training, adding that more trainings will be carried out before the end of this year, 2023.
Mr Iorhemba said SUBEB has partnered with the British Council to strengthen the capacity of teachers in the education sector so as to make the curriculum and teaching methodologies and assessment responsive to 21st century demands.
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The SUBEB chairman charged participants to go back and display the skills acquired and practise self-study to enhance their knowledge and skills.
He commended Governor Hyacinth Alia for his sheer determination to improve the quality of basic education in the state as well as UBEC for solely founding the workshop.
Speaking on the sidelines, UBEC representative, Mrs Comfort Luka, expressed satisfaction with the input and output of the facilitators and the participants respectively. She encouraged the participants to go and represent SUBEB well by virtue of the training they received.
Earlier, SUBEB’s Director of Academic Services, Mr Wilfred Gbatsorun in a remark said the workshop was a huge success, pointing out that the facilitators did well and the participants keyed into it passionately.
Representative of the British Consulate, Kaduna, Mr Moses Aule, stressed the need for government to invest in capacity building of teachers in order to get it right. He Promised maximum support of the British council and recommended the training of more teachers.
Speaking on behalf of the master trainers, Simon Vihimga Nyajo of the College of Education Katsina-Ala, recommended that the training be extended to primary school teachers to improve their proficiency in English language. He charged the participants to value the training and continue to go through their modules after the workshop, bearing in mind that the facilitators can only guide them once in a while.
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In separate responses, 2 participants; Mrs Priscilla Iorgbir from UBE/JSS, Owner Occupier, Makurdi, and Ikwe Daniel Iji, from UBE Ichakove, Oju LG, testified that the workshop equipped them with enormous in knowledge which they would use even in the next 20 years, adding that the workshop has refreshed their memories and they have learnt new things.
They appealed that the workshop be sustained and Government should assist them to acquire android phones to facilitate research and teaching.
