After school lessons, ‘day-care’ centre in disguise

As a primary school pupil in the 90s, Franklin had parents who were core civil servants. His mother was a secondary school teacher and his father was a staff of the state Ministry of Health.  Both parents worked hard to ensure they gave Franklin and his other siblings the solid educational foundation they needed to […]

As a primary school pupil in the 90s, Franklin had parents who were core civil servants. His mother was a secondary school teacher and his father was a staff of the state Ministry of Health.
 Both parents worked hard to ensure they gave Franklin and his other siblings the solid educational foundation they needed to become useful to the family and the society at large.
 As early as 5:30a.m, Franklin and his siblings are woken up by their mother, who had been up much earlier.
 On or before 7:15a.m. Franklin is set and is seen off  by the mother to his nearby school, and handed N20 for snacks during break time, while she hurries off to catch up with her own school almost immediately.
 By 2:30p.m. Franklin is already back from school. He immediately heads to their neighbour’s apartment, to collect the house keys, if no one is at home.  
He removes his clothes and waits for his lunch, quickly prepared by the mother who had also returned from work some couple of minutes after him.
Once he is done with his meal and a short siesta, Franklin goes out to play with his friends.
 But before bed at the end of the day, Franklin must attend to his homework which, of course, is not a daily affair and would be assisted by either of his parents.
He is only enrolled for extra mural classes by his parents during holidays and probably when he needs to sit for any promotional exams.
That was Franklin’s (now a practising lawyer) daily routine throughout his primary school days.
 Unfortunately, this trend is no longer obtainable today. These days the kind of academic condition children are subjected to, leaves much to be desired.
Hannatu Aliyu, a civil servant with one of the government agencies explains, “This happens because of the worsening, harsh economic situation of the country, coupled with the highly competitive nature of the society, which has compelled parents to take all kinds of jobs which directly or indirectly, has adverse effect on the family, particularly the children.”
 According to her, apart from the extreme cases of children whose parents find themselves both in the banking sector, most parents engage in all manner of jobs that give them little or no time to take care of their beloved children.
 She added that while some mothers come back home around 5.00p.m. the father returns much later in the night. 
 Unlike Franklin, whose mother, in most cases wakes up at 6.00a.m. to prepare for school, present day children are woken much earlier in order for them to catch up with the school bus.
 Ngozi Chukwu a trader at Utako market and mother of four said that some children who do not join the school bus, still have to get up early so they can be dropped off  at school by either of their parents also hurrying for work.   
 She said the situation in the country has forced parents to make adjustment and so the children have to unfortunately pay the price and also make adjustments.
 “These children are the same who went to bed late after a hectic day with a marathon set of studies. Right from 7.00a.m. when the children are driven to school, either by the school bus or the parents, till the time he/she returns home, the child is engaged with all kinds of activities till the day is over,” she said.
 Mr Philips Aba who is a school teacher explains that aside the break time during school hours, and probably few minutes after school, the child is strenuously put through all manner of work, contrary to what was obtainable during the time of Franklin.
 “Since most parents are not home till evening, it would be risky allowing the children to go home after school. These children are therefore, left with no other option than to be forced to stay back in school pending when either of the parents would come for them.
 “Of course, it makes no sense for them to stay idle for such a long period of time without being engaged with something meaningful. Hence, the after- school-lesson, which of course, is not free”.
 “But whether the lessons are making sense to these little ones whose brains are obviously saturated at a time when diminishing returns had already set in, is entirely another issue.
 “That is not the end of it! Even after being stocked with those ‘emergency’ studies, the child would still come back home with loads of homework, all of which he/she must submit to the class teacher the next morning for marking,” he said.
 Emmanuel Musa, a school counselor with one of the private schools, said, “The poor child who is already fatigued and almost dozing off would still have to be subjected to doing the assignment him/herself, or better still assisted to do the homework.
 “One then wonders who is being cheated in the long run – the child or the parents.”
 According to Mrs. Jane Ofodile, a banker with three kids, combing her job with the home front has not been easy in view of the length of time she spends outside her home.
 “It has not really been easy for me. Most times, I leave the house before 6.00a.m. and would be racing back home around 8.00p.m. By that time, my kids have already slept, or at best, feeling sleepy, sometimes without doing their homework.
 “Although my househelps have been trying to fill in the gaps, but my absence is adversely being felt,” she said.
 Ofodile, who got the job as a single lady, said her initial plan was to quit the sector for a teaching job as soon as her first child comes, to give her ample opportunity to take care of herself and family, but that plan appears to be aborted as she is presently in her seventh year there.
 “I have s contemplated resigning from the job several times, but when I calculate the amount of money I spend on my children’s school fees alone, it becomes near-suicidal taking that option,” she said.
 Another parent, Abubakar Usman, said he resorted to a home lesson teacher for his child rather than keeping her in school till as late as 5.00p.m. when he returns back from work.
 “Before I got a home lesson teacher, anytime I drive to the school to pick my child, almost all the teachers and pupils have gone. I would only meet my daughter and few others wondering about within the school premises.
 “There is no gainsaying the fact that the nation’s economic condition is biting harder and harder on everybody on daily basis. Besides, the cost of education is increasing daily. But pursuing money at the expense of the home front cannot be the best alternative for anyone who wants the best for his children.
“The imperative for contentment and prudence in a highly unhealthy competitive society like ours cannot be over-emphasised. The truth remains that one must not work in time-consuming sectors like banks or petroleum to be rich, neither would the children go to the most expensive schools before they could become relevant in the society,” Usman said.