No fewer than Two thousand Secondary School students have benefitted from the long vacation free summer lesson sponsored by member representing Jos North-West in the Plateau State House of Assembly.
This was made known on Saturday by the Lawmaker, Hon. Danjuma Azi, who is the House Committee Chairman on appropriation, during the speech and prize giving day and closing ceremony of the free summer lesson for Tudun Wada center at the Federal Secretariat in Jos, the Plateau State capital.
The summer lesson started simultaneously in three centers across the constituency with 475 registered students at Tudun Wada center, 1121 students at Kabong center and 330 above students at Gangare-Sarkin Araf center.
According to the member, about 120 teachers were engaged for the summer lesson across the centers who committed themselves to impact the lives of the students and at the end of the lesson he is only appreciating them with a token.
Outstanding students in all the classes went home with prizes. While the outstanding Senior Secondary School students, SS3 would have both their West Africa Examinations Council, (WAEC) and National Examinations Council, (NECO) paid for by the lawmaker, totaling N25,000 each, the money was given to their parents to pay their school fees.
Also, outstanding students of the Junior Secondary School JSS3, the money meant for the registration of their junior WAEC and Basic Education Certificate Examination, (BECE) was also given to their parents to support their school fees.
Hon. Danjuma Azi noted that he is a product of education hence his quest to improve on the educational standard of his constituents, especially the children.
He pledged to make the long vacation summer lesson an annual program all through his tenure as member representing the constituency, and prayed God to give him the grace to serve his people and deliver on the mandate given him to represent them.
“You know the only legacy that you can give a child is education, so I said that is my little contribution. So during this long vacation, instead of these children roaming around and engaging in other social vices, then I said what value should I add? And I choose education,” he noted.
In a paper presentation at the occasion, Professor Emmanuel Mangset of the Department of Physics in the University of Jos, spoke on the topic, “The impact of economic hardship on child upbringing and the need for a balance.” He outlined that child upbringing means to promote and support the physical, emotional, social, spiritual and cognitive development of a child from infancy to adulthood.
He noted that poor children always suffer emotional and behavioral problems as they strive to develop. According to him family income can substantially influence child and adolescent wellbeing.
“Family income seems to be more strongly related to children’s ability and achievement-related outcomes. The effects are more pronounced for children who live below poverty line and for children who live in extreme poverty.
“However parents must find a balance between striving to meet up with the challenges of economic downturn and giving the children the needed attention at home.”
The University Don advised parents to give their children the needed attention, adding that parents have all to gain if they give the attention needed at the time it is needed to their children.
Chairman of Tudun Wada Community Development Association, Mr. Lawrence Ajik lauded the Member for sponsoring the lesson, urging the beneficiaries to make good use of the lesson to make progress in life.
He admonished them to shun any act that is inimical to their growths and that of the society as he also appreciated all the teachers for their sacrifices and determination to impact the lives of the children in the community with their knowledge.
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