The Kebbi State Government has deployed over 140 monitoring officers to evaluate the performance of 1,452 trained primary One teachers in 956 primary schools across the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the affected teachers were trained under Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA) to ensure the improvement of Primary one pupils under the guide of Reading and Numeracy Activities (RANA) scheme and their enrollment in the state.

While deploying the officers in Birnin Kebbi on Sunday, the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Hajiya Rafa’atu Hammani, explained that the essence of the exercise was part of the follow-up on an effort to improve literacy level and retention of pupils’ enrollment in the primary schools.

“We invited these coaches and mentors here because they are the ones who will go round to evaluate the effects of the training we gave to these primary one teachers on RANA programme.

“Their responsibilities are to see if they are following the syllabus.

“Are they doing it correctly? If they are doing it right, they will encourage them to do more.

“This is to ensure that RANA is going on the way it should be.

“We have distributed books to all the primary one pupils that these trained primary one teachers are teaching.

“So, we want them to go round to see if all these pupils have RANA books.

“And if the teachers are teaching exactly what they are supposed to teach by following the syllabus the way it’s should be.

“Where the teacher is deficient, they will assist and help the teacher, guide him or her on the aspect such a teacher is not doing well.

“So, the whole essence of this exercise is to remind ourselves of our roles as the people who will not only bring back children to schools but make sure we retain them until they complete their schools and make sure we give them quality education,” Hammani explained.

She also recalled that one of the major problems facing the education sector was lack of constant monitoring.

The permanent secretary expressed optimism that with the deployment of the coaches, there would be an improvement in literacy standards in the schools while quality education would be achieved.

Earlier, the Desk Officer of BESDA, Malam Hassan Umar, disclosed that the programme was designed to improve literacy, enrollment of children in schools and the modalities in ensuring the objectives were achieved.

He added that the World Bank had promised the state about $1 million US dollars if the literacy level in the state improved by two per cent through the adoption of RANA.

NAN reports that 120 mentors and coaches, as well as BESDA officers in all the 21 LGAs of the state, converged at Birnin Kebbi Local Government Area of the state for the meeting of LGEA Desk Officers and RANA coaches/mentors on the distribution of pupils book and teacher’s guide. (NAN)

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