SOLA MUYIDEEN
The Kwara State Polytechnic, Rector Alhaji Mas’hud Elelu, has prescribed cooperative education as the antidote to the worsening standard of education in the country.
He explained that cooperative education as being practiced in Canada and recently in South Africa, ensures that all stakeholders are involved in the developing and designing of academic curricula for students.
Elelu, who spoke with newsmen in Ilorin, said some of his achievements in office in the last four years.
“Everybody must be involved. There must be cooperative synergy. Once there is synergy among all stakeholders, then we would be able to come up with a plan which we follow for some years and it can be reviewed as we go along.
“So we need cooperative education where all stakeholders come together, develop curricula and the principles of what and what are we supposed to follow. That would bring us out.
“And when we are talking of cooperative education, it is not only for students but staff also. What staff do we need? How do we train them? What kind of staff do we employ? What should polytechnic be for? Teachers’ education should be part of the plan.
“Again in our plan we must be able to introduce hands-on. Vocational training for the development of the country must be in the plan irrespective of whatever you are doing. That is why I want to acknowledge what the state government is doing at International Vocation Centre at Ajasse Ipo. Incidentally I am a member,” he stated.
On the ongoing strike action by both teaching and non-teaching staff of the three colleges of education in the state, Elelu urged both government and the staff to imbibe the spirit of ‘give and take’ in resolving the impasse.
“There has to be give and take. Both parties must give and take,” he added.
The rector attributed the relative academic stability in Kwara Polytechnic to transparency and openness.
“I think it is prioritization. Knowing what are your challenges, one is prioritization, openness, blocking leakages and those are the things that affect us here.
“Openness in the sense that everybody knows what is coming in, everybody knows how much what the government is giving us as subvention, they know how much is our salary and they know how much we are collecting as IGR.
“We must prioritize. That is what has helped us here. You prioritize and open up and let people know what is happening. And then do not bite more than you can chew. Take your time. Finally look outside for inflow of resources from outside.”
