Mrs. Ngozi Sam Okpabi, the Principal of Government Girls Secondary School, Alode in this interview with Emmanuel Obe lists the prospects and challenges of the new girls’ school.
What is the enrolment figure of the school like?
Presently, the total enrolment figure of the school is 261 students. Junior Secondary 1 has 62; Junior Secondary School 2 has 132; while Junior Secondary School 3 has 61 students.
What about the teacher/ student ratio?
The teacher/student ratio is 1:20, that is, for every teacher, there are 20 students. So, the teachers are not overwhelmed by the number of students.
What was the performance of students in the last external examinations?
The result of the maiden external examination (JUWAEC) of 2021/2022 academic session taken by about 28 students is yet to be released.
What are the available facilities in the school?
There are two offices; one staff room and five classrooms. However there are not enough tables and chairs to go round for the teachers.
What are the facilities that are needed by the school?
We need an assembly hall where the students can use for their assemblies and general functions. Similarly, we need a library, a computer room, white boards and notice boards. We also need bookshelves and cupboards, cabinet files, computers and laptops. As I said earlier on, we need more tables and chairs for teachers, while students need more desks as the student population is increasing.
There is the need for us to have a generator, water borehole and reservoir tank, a mowing machine and still many other necessaries that I cannot immediately remember.
How much has the community been supportive of the school?
The school enjoys community support but it is not enough. Thus, there is need for support from other corporate organizations. There is a security house, but there are no personnel at night or even in the daytime.
How have parents been responding to the school?
Their response has not been encouraging. The PTA (Parents/Teachers Association) is not yet fully in operation. We need parents to come on board and support the school.
What are your major challenges?
Principally, we need more teaching staff and adequate security for the facilities we have on ground in the school. We need to install burglary proof and protectors for the doors and windows in all the rooms to prevent break-ins . We also need a mowing machine to maintain the school field. An assembly hall is urgently needed to accommodate programmes that we do not need to hold in the open air.
