Lagos will not penalise schools that missed resumption day - DG

Contrary to earlier reports, the Lagos State government is not contemplating shutting down schools that failed to start the new term on 4th January as directed by it.

The Director-General, Office of Education Quality Assurance (OEQA), Mrs. Abiola Seriki-Ayeni said should a measure would be counter-productive to learning.

In a statement on Monday, Seriki-Ayeni said that 640 out of the 720 schools visited by the OEQA complied with directive on resumption date, which is a compliance rate of about 89 per cent.

While commending the schools that adhered to the state’s resumption date,  the OEQA DG lamented that about 80 schools failed to comply.

She said that the OEQA would not go beyond issuing letters and placing stickers of non-compliance on the gates of schools that disobeyed the directive.

The OEQA boss clarified that the directive for public and private schools to maintain a uniform calendar was not new as it had been in place for several years.

She, however, said the renewed enforcement was imperative because of the interruptions to school days occasioned by COVID-19 and the accompanying lockdowns.

Seriki-Ayeni recalled that in June last year, the 4th January resumption date was agreed at meetings between representatives of the state government, private school proprietors, private school associations, and other relevant education stakeholders.

The DG appealed to public and private school administrators in the state to work with families to ensure that children are in school as expected and start the new term on a sound note.

“Just like we have always done in the past, the state government expects compliance and will continue to dialogue with all schools on matters relating to the progress of education in the state,” Seriki-Ayeni said.