... but schools must pay N.25m to participate Winners to get:
•Trophy
•Certificate
•Participation in global competition
•Permission to display award logo
The British Council has announced the introduction of its acclaimed International School Award (ISA) in Nigeria. But schools willing to participate must cough out a whooping £1,000 (about N250,000) to be eligible. Winning schools will be awarded a trophy and certificate, as well as having the opportunity to participate in global school awards competitions.
They will also be entitled to display the award logo either in their premises or publications for a period of three years. Making the announcement at a press briefing in Lagos which was also attended by teachers and heads of private secondary schools, ISA's Project Manager in Nigeria, Miss Olamipo Oyetunde said the award scheme would provide a motivational framework for teachers to develop themselves professionally and add international dimension to their skills.
According to her, the International School Award recognises commitment to developing global citizenship in young people and prepares them for work in a global economy by increasing their understanding of other countries and cultures and embedding international learning in the curriculum. .
"Any school that is interested in the award competition will have to pay £1,000 as a registration fee," she disclosed.
Asked if the registration fee, about £1,000 is not too high for Nigerian schools most of which are just struggling to stay in business, Oyetunde replied that the fee should not be a stumbling block for schools with determination to wear the coveted crown that awaits winners adding that nothing good comes cheap.
The Council however seems to have narrowed its target to mostly high brow secondary schools with six digits tuition fees in Lekki, Ikoyi, GRA Ikeja among others whose teachers and heads graced the press briefing.
Representatives of public schools or those in the low brow areas were conspicuously absent. But Oyetunde says the government is fully aware of the award launch, adding however that the decision for public schools to participate might take some time due to the bureaucratic nature of government.
She further disclosed that participating schools will be free to choose their projects but such projects should be completed within a year and must have strong impacts on the students, teachers and the society.
Interested schools, she further announced, would have to submit evidence of the impact of international strategies and activities they embarked on. They must also be able to demonstrate that the whole school is engaged in the process, in a step-by-step approach. She explained further that the schools could as well carry out projects that are priorities to local economy but must have global outlook and relevance.
According to her, the projects' focus could be as a framework for international work, professional development, school development, introduction of self-assessment techniques or to secure support of the ministry of education for wider programmes.
So far, over 10,000 ISAs have been presented to successful schools globally since the scheme began in 1999 and Nigeria's launch is the first in Africa. With a registration fee of £1000. The International School Award (ISA) may well turn out to be another money spinner for the British Council and by extension, the British government.
Revenue from education, especially tuition fees from international students, forms a huge chunk of earnings by the British Government. International students currently contribute between £5-8 billion a year to the UK economy.
Even with more stringent regulations designed to discourage foreign students, Nigerians continue to troop to Britain in large numbers every year and obviously contribute a huge part of earnings by Britain from international students.
Observers believe such craze for education in British institutions may have necessitated the introduction of the International School Award in Nigeria.
National Mirror