Education needs better funding, infrastructure for optimal performance – Rev. Sr. Caroline Igwe

Chinwe Ifezulike-Odita

Worried about the poor state of the educational system in the country, Rev. Sr Caroline Adaku Igwe OP, a Dominican sister and headmistress of Dominican Nursery and Primary Schools, Mafoluku, has called on the federal government to sit up and revisit the Nigerian educational curriculum and ensure adequate funding for the sector.

She also advised the Nigerian government to hand over mission schools back to them Missions as a possible way of rescuing the sector which is highly deteriorating

She stated this while speaking in an interview with Daily Champion on the celebration of her 25 years in the ministry and service.

A consummate educator with many years of experience, Rev. Sr Igwe explained that ” the mission school stepped in to help educate the Nigerian child but the government has turned around to tax them instead of applauding them.

According to her “Educating the Nigerian child should be the government’s first responsibility but they have not lived up to expectations in this.”

It would be recalled that the sector has continued to deteriorate over the years due largely to inadequate funding, poor implementation of educational policies and programmes and poor attitude to school work. This, in fact, has resulted in poor infrastructure, a lack of teaching and learning tools, an increase in the number of out-of-school children, and producing less competitive graduates.

While appeals to the Federal Government to increase its allocation to the sector, at least, to meet the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation’s (UNESCO) recommendation, has consistently been rebuffed, the situation is not different in states as funds earmarked for the sector have been very low, thus hindering the provision of basic infrastructure and provision of needed tools to make learning conducive, which is a threat to the nation’s social and economic development.

She advised the Nigerian government to hand over mission schools back to them just like the former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi did, when he was governor of the state. “If every state should do that, the country would be better for it and there would be less robbery, kidnappings, advanced fee fraud(419), and such like ills.

Rev. Sr Caroline also explained that other countries in Africa support mission schools because they recognize that the mission schools are helping the government fulfill their responsibility.

She expressed that in countries like Italy, China, UK and Japan , their government is highly involved in education. Their government prioritizes education. In Italy, when a child is 3 years, if the parents fail to send the child to school, the government sues the parents and sends the child to school.

‘’Our educational standard has fallen seriously but our leaders do not care. This is why there is the proliferation of private schools both good and sub-standard ones. Unfortunately, most of these private schools pay attention to mostly academic prowess rather than the total Education of the child. Education should be holistic to touch every aspect of the child. We in Missions believe in the type of educational approach that recognizes the importance of a child’s social, physical, spiritual and emotional development”. She stated

She explained that education has become a business in Nigeria and competition is rife among the private schools thus widening the already huge gulf between private and public schools due to government non -challant attitude towards the latter.

Also, ‘’ Only indigent parents send their children to public schools nowadays because of the poor standard of education. The mission schools which used to be cheap with high standards, unfortunately, have,out of necessity increased their fees so that they can employ qualified teachers and acquire equipment that would help give the children holistic education. In all these, it’s the Nigerian parents that bear the brunt of this government neglect.’’

Her 25 years celebration was marked with pomp and felicitations from many, whose lives she has touched in the course of her ministry. “I view my life’s work as service to God and it has been a glorious journey though not without it’s fair share of challenges. My motto is to lean on God and not on man. God is everything to me, father, mother, sister, brother, husband and boyfriend.

Asked about her landmark achievements in the 25-year journey, she said ” it is those souls I have touched. Pupils, parents, my fellow sisters, parishioners, etc.” She explained that after her formation in Italy, she came back to Nigeria and established the Dominican Young Hearts in Abatete, Anambra State, where she was posted. The young hearts took the responsibility of taking care of old, indigent, and convalescent parishioners at Abatete. ” We would visit them every Saturday and with the contributions we made, buy them food and other stuff that they needed. It was there that I met Angela, a childless widow who was partially blind. I took up the care of this woman until her death many years down the line. I remember, her sleeping quarters were like a dog’s lair. I had to intervene, with the help of some charitable individuals, to change her mattress, bedding, and sleeping clothes. I replaced them with new and better ones and cleaned out the place thoroughly. She used to burst into songs of praise whenever I visited”.

On rating the students that have passed through Dominican Schools, Rev.Sr. Caroline said Dominican children can hold their heads up anywhere in the world because they are well prepared and are given the optimal education both in academics, skill acquisition, and leadership training. ” We help develop their confidence. We give the best and we do not only form the head, but the heart too. We teach their hearts to love and to work hard, to impact the world. As a matter of fact, a lot of our children are impacting the world in their different fields of endeavour. I have never heard of a Dominican child messing up”.

For a woman who knew she wanted to be a reverend sister at the age of five and who fought fiercely to see that dream is realized despite her parent’s opposition, Sister Caroline is focused, determined, and fearsome in a healthy way. She is certain she is fulfilling her purpose on earth and is happily doing so.

Her future plans include making the school more conducive for children and to continually raising the ante, educationally for the school through peer review with the best schools in the state. “We look at other 21st century schools, compare and upgrade continuously. We also encourage our teachers to take online tuition during holidays and the school also organizes in-house and external training for them. Our teachers enjoy the serenity we have and there is a very low turnout of teachers in our school. We are missionaries and they are collaborators with us in God’s vineyard.”