Sammie is a precocious boy of 12 and is
in JSS3 in one of the upscale private secondary schools in Lagos. He is
always very active in debating and quiz competitions and very often, he
is included in his school team to various educational programmes across
Lagos schools.
Recently, Sammie featured in an
invitational quiz competition which was transmitted on television and by
the quarter final stage, he came tops in his category. He dazzled the
quiz panel by his vast knowledge of famous holiday resorts around the
world. In fact, he made them realize that he did not only read about
them, he said he had been to some during excursions embarked upon by his
school.
His vast knowledge of the Premier league
and famous players around the world amazed the panel and he became the
star of the night. But just when he was expected to nick the top prize,
he flunked it just because of two questions on local current affairs.
When he was asked to state which of the
Nigerian states Ikogosi Warm Spring is located, there was pin-drop
silence. Everyone in the audience became curious when Sammie started
fidgeting on his seat. He was crestfallen as he did not know the correct
answer. Even though, his parents are from Ekiti State, the brilliant
boy found the name Ikogosi very strange.
In some schools, excursion outside the
country is organised every term; which means that a parent may have to
provide N1.5m per session on holiday travels alone, excluding school
fees, developmental fees and the so-called miscellaneous charges. For
instance, a school in Ikorodu, Lagos, charged N492,500 per child for a
holiday trip to France recently.
For some schools, it is an advertising
instrument, as many parents are easily carried away by the claims that
their children’s school make regular trips abroad.
Most people spoken to by our correspondent could not understand why any parent would spend so much on a child’s vacation.
But Mr. Boye Adeolu, a public school teacher, who watched the programme and narrated the story to Saturday PUNCH,
attributed the boy’s predicament to early exposure of pupils of the
rich in upscale schools to overseas excursions when they barely know
what goes on around them locally.
“I don’t blame such children because
nobody bothers to mention the local places to them in their schools
again. Instead, they are made to realise that getting to know Buckingham
Palace, Eifel Tower, White House or the Capitol is civilisation.
“In fact, when they don’t carry them to
Europe, they are often ferried to tourist spots in places like Ghana,
Senegal, South Africa, Botswana, Kenya, Egypt and so on. But when we
were still young, the tourist destinations we were exposed to are the
Ikogosi Warm Spring, Olumo Rock, Erin Waterfalls, the various museums
and parks around the country.”
A parent, simply identified as Busari, told Saturday PUNCH
how he had been trying to wriggle himself out of a difficult situation
such a foreign excursion organised by his child’s school put him.
He said, “My son came home to tell me
that their teachers were taking them to London on excursion. I did not
even take him serious until I was invited down to the school by the head
teacher who intimated me with the foreign trip plan. He said each pupil
was expected to pay N350,000 for the London trip. My excited son has
not allowed me to have peace since then and I don’t know where to find
that kind of money for an excursion. But I learnt many of the parents
have paid up.”
He said, “Other parents argued that
education had gone beyond national boundaries. They said globally, it is
believed that pupils must see what is happening outside their borders
because it enriches their experience. Though the Internet has made the
world a global village, sight-seeing is important.
“They said pupils can easily discuss or
relate with what they see. Excursion is part of education as it
demonstrates in practical terms the reality of what the children have
been taught in the classroom. Also, they argue that it exposes pupils to
experiences that will help their academic pursuit.
“But the problem is that I can’t see the
pupils getting the best knowledge of foreign environment as their own
here. What happens is that they may end up half -baked because they
neither have deep knowledge of their home environment nor that of the
foreign place where they visit on mere sight-seeing.”
When some of the posh schools involved
in such foreign excursion were contacted by our correspondent, they
pleaded not to be quoted officially.
But a source in one of them told our correspondent that such excursions are basically educational.
He said, “Our school organises
excursions abroad because it is an international school. The excursion
is mainly for educational summits, where pupils interact with pupils
from other countries in order to gain more knowledge, and classes are
organised for them over there. But parents don’t have to engage in it if
they don’t have the means. We don’t force anybody.”
Saturday PUNCH learnt that some of the schools shun local excursions because many parents fear that their wards may be kidnapped.
One source said, “Most of the parents
fear that their children may be over exposed if we start taking them
around the local places in the name of excursion. In fact, they are
worried that such children may be kidnapped by people that are close to
them just to extort them.
“And if you look at the rate people
kidnap for ransom nowadays, you will not blame them. You know that God
forbid, if any child in our care is kidnapped, we are liable as well. We
don’t take chances at all and our pupils are better for the trips.
“Apart from being able to fund foreign
trips for their wards, they feel more relaxed that no one would plan
such evil against them in a foreign country. The parents who are used to
such foreign environments believe that developed societies abroad are
organised where provisions are made for such purposes.”
The source, who is a house teacher in
one of the upscale schools, said the state of Nigerian roads is another
area of concern for parents.
“The rate at which accidents claim lives
in Nigeria is appalling and if any parent does not want their children
taken about on such roads, I don’t blame them. The loss of any child can
be very devastating, more so if it occurs in the course of taking the
child around for excursion.”
Other respondents told Saturday PUNCH that most of the tourist centres of old have long been abandoned by their minders.
Mr. Femi Hammond, a banker, said he would not allow any school to take his child on tour of any dilapidated tourist centre.
“I remember that my dad used to take us
to the zoo in Ibadan in those days. Even if the zoo is still there, I
doubt it whether it will still be in shape. If the various governments
are serious, let them work on the historic places by providing good road
network, security and electricity.
“These days when even your blood
relations organise the kidnap of their cousins for ransom, I may not
feel comfortable when my child is taken on any local excursion. I don’t
want to take any risk that I will regret later.
“When I was admitted to the former Ondo
State University in Ado Ekiti, I remember that we were taken round the
town during our orientation programme visiting Oodua Textile Mill, the
palace of Ewi of Ado Ekiti and other interesting spots.
“Excursion was a rich culture among the
young ones in those days when everyone looked forward to embarking on
one. But the reverse is the case nowadays. People do a lot of things for
money now and I don’t want to open my eyes and put my children in
danger. I prefer foreign trips where I can sleep in peace rather than
waking up to learn that someone has kidnapped my child.
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