The Governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, will launch the Edo Basic Education Sector Transformation (Edo BEST) tomorrow, April 19, to kick-start the overhaul of the basic education sub-sector in the state.
Edo BEST entails the training of teachers on new teaching methods, which has been ongoing; deployment of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools in teaching; harmonisation of teaching and learning outcomes across locations as well as the adoption of interactive classroom management model among others.
Special Adviser to Edo State Governor on Basic Education and Acting Chairman, State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Dr. Joan Osa Oviawe, who announced this, said Edo BEST will include governance and institutional development; teacher and curriculum development; community participation and partnership; and infrastructure and organisational development.
Oviawe said: “The Edo BEST classrooms will have what we call Character Board, which is a technique to help mould the character of our pupils. For example, on the Character Board, pupils are rewarded for punctuality rather than being flogged for coming to school late. “There will be a shelf of books in each classroom, to serve as a mini-library to promote a reading culture. The pupils will be taught to manage the books so that on a rotational basis, every pupil will have the opportunity to serve as the class librarian. Teachers will learn new classroom management techniques and how to create a community of learners out of pupils.” She explained that one of the goals of the programme is to improve reading and numeracy skills across all our public primary schools “so that by the time a child is leaving primary one, they would have begun reading at grade level so that at the point of graduation in primary six, all our pupils will be able to read and write. This is the goal and vision of Governor Obaseki and it will drive the various components that form the fulcrum of Edo BEST.
