 The classroom is no longer a one-size-fit all. I saw a result that was issued to a special child from the school that he attends. In the result, the boy was issued an F for all the 10 subjects he offered. And the teacher commented that the child needed to work harder. I asked myself, how else is this child to work harder? By the way, there are no dole in us, only dole teachers. If you have taught a child and his scores F all round, this is a sign that you, the teacher, have failed in your responsibility and nothing, absolutely nothing, has been taught. This is 2021 and teachers need to upscale their teaching methods and techniques. If the kids do not learn the way you teach, it is your responsibility to figure out how to teach the child. Also, understand and educate yourself on teaching special needs children. I realized that the teacher and the school are oblivious of special needs and the best way to teach them. It is also emotionally draining and discouraging to send such a callous result to the parents. We need teachers to be trained on special needs education and how to navigate teaching children with special needs. We also need to be empathic as individuals. If the teacher was empathic, he or she would have known that such a result should never be sent to anybody, talk less of a parent. We have even seen now more than ever that academic success does not equal life success. So we must ensure that we do not write off learners in the classroom. The classroom should no longer be a one-size-fits-all. You know, when I listen to your advocacy, I was blown away because I think this is a topic that we've ignored a lot. It's only in Nigeria where special needs kids are not good in arithmetic. Across the world, they top the charts. NASA. They are super smart. Yes, but they can't be taught the way we teach other kids. So it begs the question, if they are so super smart because they are usually geniuses as seen with their very good with math, some very good with pictorial representation, they are massively intelligent. So it just means that our educational system cannot handle geniuses. That's what I translated for you. But to also be very honest, you find that a lot of the no-needs students go to school in Nigeria and they do badly or they just manage. People come with a third class and then they go and do masters abroad and they are by far the best. True. So I think that the way we teach or we expect people to learn might not really be the best for critical thinking. So you are thought to take it as is given. So let me tell you one of the things that I experienced in the university. If your lecture attitude is something in a certain way and then you find another way of experiencing it, you might be penalized for not even putting that word forward. So that also shows that generally we might have a problem with how we expect people to learn in Nigeria. What I think what it shows clearly is that Nigeria spends less than 10% of its budget on education. Where are you going to move it to 50% in the coming years? 50. Yes, I have. 15, not 50. Oh, 15? How can it be 50? I thought it was going to be a new Nigeria. No, no. I think that sadly this issue that has been raised here is something that is deep, is painful. And it now also for me says that as people, especially in the education space, there's that drive, that need for education to become different. The skills of the future are so different from what Nigeria is even understanding or identifying. And obviously we're still using outdated teaching methods to be able to teach children in this time and in. 2021. And then of course, now with all the myriad of issues raised here, is it any wonder that people are trying to jump out of Nigeria? Yeah. My case at last was very red, but then me, it's sad, it's unfortunate. And for special needs children, I've always had a heart for it and I've been like, okay, but I think because I've been involved in a lot of things around education and development, I believe that there is a gradual, but no change occurring in the education sector. Yes, maybe from the private system, private school system, but somewhat somehow, special needs children are becoming relevant. I know quite a number, a few right now that parents are identifying and they don't also forget that the issue of stigmatization from society and also an inadequacy in terms of teaching teachers themselves. What teachers this is, let's give them some credit, I believe. It's a painful experience. It's a painful experience. It's a painful experience, but I know because I have been in that space and I do have people in that space that a lot of teachers now and these are personally obscuring. Now, can we do better? Can the school system, can we as society begin to hold the education system through every form we know? Say, you know what? We want a difference. Can we begin to push ourselves to get that say? But you can only hold. I want to take off from where you started. So what I got from the advocacy is that it's too prompt. There's the issue of special needs and then there's the issue of even just general education itself. One Koduna State governor decided to be brave and take a step in that direction and say, okay, let me even find out the people who are inside this place that is teaching the next generation and all people were interested in is how to collect their money. It wasn't an issue of, it's even true. Let's go through the system, let's go through the exam, let's go through the fire and see who will come out of it. So your education system already is in a huge, there's a huge problem there. There isn't enough money to even, what do you call it, to standardize it. Then you've left the space to entrepreneur people, not educationists. When I was growing up, I was taught by teachers, people who loved, who had the passion, who understood and that's what is also missing. And so when you now spoke about not sending F9 to the parents that it is not fair, if the child has made F9, it's F9, you let the parent know, I'm not one of those people that thinks that there's a standard, there's a minimum standard that a child needs to be educated on because he or she is going to go out into the world. If you don't know how to add, if you don't understand how to speak basic, you put your tenses properly and all, that needs to be done. But as she said also, the issue of feeling sorry for the teachers, our teachers here are honestly battered, they're like, they're honestly battered. They are not, what do you call it, motivated enough, they are not being carried along and the parents again, everything is the teacher. If the child is not behaving properly, it's the teacher. If the child is not, it's the teacher. Where is the role of the parent in ensuring that, we're not at home to even help them with their homework. We're not at home to even understand, okay, what did you do in school? Where can I help? Can I go and meet your teacher? We've left everything, we've outsourced it to a system that is already in problem. Yeah, I'm sure if you have special needs children, should you as a parent actually put your special needs child in a mainstream school without actually making sure that that mainstream school has the capacity to take in special needs children? And if they don't, what can I as that kind of parent actually do to that system? So, you know, it's a myriad of issues. Or should we actually scrap formal education and really look at it and say, is this the working force? You know, but I've seen some developments in the sector. I have a friend in Abuja who has a special needs child and she's about 13 now. But their system, what they did was, he and his wife started a school. His wife went and started reading online about special needs education. And they started a school. And right now, they're the foremost in special needs education. You see, that's it. I know people who've done that. And so that is one person. But with the kind of, it's like sometimes this issues raise opportunities, doors that we're not looking at. They begin to, and what I believe strongly in the last one year, people in the education space outside of government, you know, government and people should understand that technology and the change in dynamics have created avenues to change things. So if we actually have the opportunity to, in that space, as this advocacy is going on and as educationists are listening or watching, there's a lot of change that can be created because half of the children today are homeschooling anyway. So can we actually take advantage of what we're having on ground and change the narrative? But then again, if a school, that particular school, that parent is not enough to just be angry, there should be issues taking up with that school. Now, why do we have a regular teacher taking this child and giving them regular, you can't grade the child on what the child doesn't know. So definitely, we've all agreed that the parent, the teacher, the society, the government and private institution, all of us have to come together to make education for special needs better in Nigeria. We bring these issues to your plates because we all want a better society and a better Nigeria. So we will always want to see some of your opinions on issues we discuss here. Emo Obubete says APC and PDP members are already wired a certain way. The honest youths have to infiltrate both parties and diplomatically alter their mindsets. Unfortunately, is it true these parties that we should stand a chance to improve, that we stand a chance of improving the system because they own everything? Dotsun Ajamuna says, I like how we talk about things that should be done as if we don't know how the contraption works. You expect the National Assembly to bite the hand that feeds them who honestly believes that a bunch of people are unqualified to be representatives to begin with to embark on a process that will not favor them. Man, I laugh but hope springs internal, I suppose. We have now come to the end of this week's episode of The Advocate. However, the advocacy continues on our social media platforms on Facebook plus TV Africa, hashtag The Advocate NG or on Instagram at plusTVAfrica, hashtag The Advocate NG. To catch up with previous broadcasts, go to plusTVAfrica.com forward slash The Advocate NG. Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel plus TV Africa. Till next week, same time on this station. Let's keep advocating for a better society.