The government of Lagos State has stated that it is actively trying to address the issue of overcrowding in public schools located throughout the state.
The Director General of the Office of Education Quality Assurance, Mrs. Abiola Seriki-Ayeni, stated that the state government’s primary objective was to ensure that students in schools across the state receive a high-quality education.
Speaking on the teacher-student ratio that is recommended by the National Education Policy, which is 1:40 for secondary schools, 1:35 for primary schools, and 1:25 for preschoolers, the Director of OEQA stated that the government was building more schools in areas where existing schools are overpopulated and employing more qualified teachers while training existing ones in effective class management. The National Education Policy recommends 1:40 for secondary schools, 1:35 for primary schools, and 1:25 for preschoolers.
“There is a significant amount of interest in enrolling at state-run institutions across the state. The administration is aware of the difficulties that are associated with meeting such a demand.
“Lagos State is the most populous state in Nigeria; in fact, it is because to the population of Lagos that Nigeria is the most populated black nation… However, this does not imply that we do not have any standards when it comes to the delivery of educational service.
“There is a never-ending debate about which should come first; the quality of the service or the accessibility of it? Both of these things are happening in Lagos State. We are not going to stop accepting new students, but at the same time, we are aware that if we create an ecosystem that includes private schools that are subject to greater oversight and that adhere to higher standards, there will be education available for all pupils.
“We will not, under any circumstances, compromise on quality as a government. Only during this administration has our governor placed a high priority on the construction of additional schools in regions where the existing schools are already at or near capacity. This is done in order to depopulate the existing schools, which hasn’t been done in a very long time, and to rehabilitate the existing schools so that students can learn in an environment that is more conducive to comfort.
According to Seriki-Ayeni, “the administration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu is also hiring more qualified teachers into the system to guarantee that the quality of delivery in schools is not compromised.”
