Ethames gives Nigerian students study oppurtunity in London

By Sulaimon Olanrewaju

EThames Graduate School, London

Nigerians wishing to study abroad now have a good opportunity to do so courtesy of EThames Graduate School, London. The school, located in the heart of London, is one of the approved private schools which offer both undergraduate and graduate studies in various courses. Some of the courses in which EThames Graduate School has carved a niche for itself include; MBA, Accounting, Business Management, Financial Management, Computer Information, Strategic Business Studies, Nursing and Tourism and Hospitality.

The school also runs specialised courses such as ABE Certificate in Business Administration, ABE Certificate in Information Technology and Computer as well as CAT course in Business Accounting. One of the attractions of EThames is that the school is reputed for excellent courses and facilties. Not only does the school offer admission to students, it also assists them to settle down in London. EThames usually assists students admitted for its programmes to get their student visa. The visa does not only allow the students to study in the UK, it also affords them the opportunity to work for 20 hours a week and 80 hours a month. This affords the students to work to support themselves during their study. At the end of the study, they are also allowed to stay back in the UK for up to two years to work before returning to Nigeria. Similarly during holidays, the students can travel to any part of the world.

According to JCI senator Tunde Anifowose-Kelani, ETGS Channel Partner in Nigeria, the school will be offering admission in April 2008. The sale of form closes on Monday, February 5, 2008. “EThames will be admitting students in April. As the school’s representatives in Nigeria, we already have on sale admission forms. A copy of the form sells for N5,000. Whoever is interested should contact any of our offices nationwide or call any of our people”, Kelani-Anifowose said during a chat. “EThames is one of the most highly rated schools in the UK. The Principal of the school, Ms. Susan Hindley, is the Chairman of the Association of UK Approved Colleges. That goes to show that EThames is not a mushroom school, neither is it one of those schools that only exist on the internet. So, for anyone who is desirous of having university qualifications that enjoy global recognition, EThames is the answer”, the EThames representative in Nigeria said.

Lagos teachers trained on leadership skills

Kunle Awosiyan, Lagos

Again, Lagos State government has begun to train its secondary and primary schools’ teachers. The Wednesday’s Leadership and Management Development programme for teachers is the second workshop that the state government would be organizing in the last five months.

Last September, the government trained 1200 teachers from various public schools while another set of 1200 teachers gathered at the Elephant House, Lagos for a three-day training last week.

In other words, the government has trained 2400 teachers out of about 23000 teachers in the state public schools.

Speaking to Education Tribune, the Permanent Secretary, Teachers Establishment and Pensions Office for the state, Mrs. Risikat Akiyode, said that the training programme had become imperative for both the teachers and government to enable it to address the dying pedagogical culture in schools.

According to her, it is not enough to teach and instill corporal punishment on pupils but teachers need to show leadership and management abilities while doing their primary assignment.

She said that most parents had lost interest in enrolling their children in public schools because of the lack of parental care from most teachers, saying, “That is why the state government is set to train and retrain its teachers to show love, care and be more committed to the building of future leaders.”

She stated, “This programme is targeted at exposing our teachers to modern and effective techniques of teaching pupils. We want a teacher that is more enthusiastic to give good quality output.”

Akiyode explained that the core objective of the workshops were centered on how to develop effective team and interpersonal skills among teachers; mentoring, coaching and counseling skills; managing of staff meeting and knowing your pupils.

Besides, she said that the workshop also encompassed series of subject based training and development of skills to identifying weak area of pupils by the teachers. According to her, the state government has consulted with the West African Examinations Council to ensure that subject based training is effectively conducted.

Through this, she noted, the government would have changed the orientation, perception and carriage of many teachers in the state. One of the participants, Mr. Adeniyi Adekunle, from Lagos Education District four described the training as an eye opener, adding that it had exposed him to various modern techniques that could help him in his teaching profession. According to him, the training will make it easier for teachers to adequately translate the state’s educational policy to reality.

In the meantime the state Commissioner for Establishment and Training, Mr. Jide Sanwoolu, has said that government would not stop the training until it is able to train all the teachers.

He said that the present administration had observed that most of its public schools’ teachers lacked leadership and management skills and that the shortcomings might affect the pupils if not quickly addressed.

As he put it, “One particular aspect has been eluded in the life of some of our teachers and that is leadership. The present administration has realized that education sector is critical to its development. As a way of helping our children and making our teachers fulfilled professionals, we have come up with this training.”

He explained that the future of the pupils is determined by the attitude of their teachers, saying, “Government will not allow the exercise to go in vain.”