C-River abolishes first school certificate

CALABAR — The Cross River State government has abolished first school leaving certificate to encourage holders to further their education.

Commissioner for Education, Prof. Offiong, disclosed this in Calabar, yesterday, at a meeting with head teachers of public primary schools.

He said the decision of the government was informed by the need to bridge the communication gap between policy makers and those who implement government policies.

According to him, govern-ment will no longer issue first school leaving certificate to primary six pupils after the 2007/2008 session.

“Basic School Certificates will now be issued to successful students on completion of the Junior Secondary School (JSS3) examination and there is no automatic transition into the JSS1 class,” he added.

“The decision to abolish the first school leaving certificate was geared towards encouraging primary six pupils to further their education and by so doing stand the chance of being productive to themselves and the society,” he said.

On the continuous assessment scheme, the commissioner said it would provide a platform to keep track of children’s performance in school.

He said the issue of handwriting competition at the primary school level would be re-introduced into the school curriculum to enforce Government Read and Write campaign.

The commissioner also disclosed that a list of accredited private schools would be made public early 2010 to avoid the possibility of frustrating children at the point of choice of schools.
http://news.onlinenigeria.com/templates/?a=11225&z=12

If the intention is to encourage further education, then it is welcome development.

I thought FSLC was a federal gov issue.
I'm wondering the effect this policy will have on
jobseekers from that State.

Who gets a job with FSLC when university graduates can hardly secure one?

if you were giving them the money to further their education, maybe they wuld do so. but all they succeed in doing is to frustrate job seekers and probably increase unemployment rate. stupid govt

good move, the illiteracy rate in this country is alarming

Good development. Should also be encourage in all the states especially the Northern States. Imagine in 2009 someone being proud of First School Leaving Certificate.