Education stakeholders have continued to express mixed reactions to the recent policy pronouncement by the Federal Government on eligibility of candidates for the secondary schools final examinations.
The The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, recently announced a minimum age of 18 for candidates sitting for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and the National Examination Council (NECO) examinations.
Mamman said that the age limit for candidates sitting for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), administered by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), also remained 18 years.
According to him, henceforth, these organisations will not allow children below the stipulated age to sit for their examinations.
However, some stakeholders applauded the policy, describing it as timely, while others described it as a misplaced priority by the Federal Government.
They called for an introspective evaluation and further consideration, to ensure that it did not have adverse effects on the education system.
A Public Analyst, Mr Bulus Dabit, said that the policy would be counterproductive and could lead to false declarations of age by parents for their children.
“The best means of control is to enforce the directive at entry point of students into secondary which should be at age eleven.
“ Parents will circumvent this policy through false declaration of age.
“Massive enlightenment on the need to allow students complete their secondary school should be done to underscore the benefit for entering secondary school at age 11, “ he said.
Dabit said that the situation could also lead to candidates enrolling for the examinations at “passing centres”.
“ The national policy should ensure documentation of students in Senior Secondary(SS) 1 towards their SSS 3 exams. This will stop students from migrating to these passing centres,” he said.
Similarly, a parent, Mrs Patience Ogobah, said that the directive may not work at the current level of candidates sitting for the senior certificate exams, but should be enforced at the entry point.
“ They should effect it from entrance to primary school, that is how they will get it right,” she said.
An educationist, who spoke on the condition anonymity, expressed concern that there were more pressing issues that require attention.
He said that some children were exceptionally fast learners, which led to the establishment of special schools for them, such as the Gifted School Academy in Suleja, Niger state.
“ We have smart schools in every state, these are all efforts to help this set of students to be able to maintain their speed,” he said.
However, Akinade Olatunji, a professor of Applied and Environmental Geochemistry, University of Ibadan, said that ideally, no child should be less than 18 in SS 3.
Olatunji said that the country’s education policy, which stipulates six years before the commencement of primary one, six years in primary school, and six years in secondary school, all totaling 18 years, was still in place.
He described the outcry by people as unnecessary, adding that most of those who entered tertiary institutions before age 18 were usually under immense psychological stress.
“We are denying children of their childhood by the prevailing conditions, “ he said.
Similarly, a guidance counselor at a public secondary school, Ms Larak Sallah, said that the policy was laudable.
According to Sallah, findings revealed that those who gained dmission to tertiary institutions before the age of 18 are more susceptible to joining negative groups, such as cults.
“ They are quick to join cult groups and succumb to pressure because the parental training to be matured is not there.
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“You know adolescent age needs guidance, under 18 should be under the guidance of their parents,” she said.
Sallah said that there were reports of lecturers having difficulties managing students in tertiary institutions because they were not mature enough to follow instructions or advice.
She said that there were brilliant children under 18, especially with their exposure to the internet, but maintained that they were often too immature to handle certain situations effectively.(NAN)
