Deborah Alabi, senior assistant principal, Greensprings School Lekki, has underscored the need for students to be equipped with the necessary practical life skills needed to survive and thrive even after school.
To be progressive in today’s fast-paced and challenging world, students need more than academics, Alabi said, adding that by complementing academics with extracurricular activities, students will be well-positioned to face the future.
According to her, “Our world has changed, and every day, it becomes more evident that many Nigerian graduates are not well-prepared for life after school because they lack valuable skills such as entrepreneurship, communication, emotional intelligence, leadership, critical thinking, and growth mindset. The root of this problem can be traced back to elementary and secondary schools focusing mainly on academics.”
Alabi, while speaking at a recent virtual event organised by Greensprings School, further said: “Schools would do better by taking extracurricular activities seriously, as these activities help children to develop many of these valuable skills. This is why, at Greensprings School, we earnestly encourage our students to get involved in extracurricular activities like sports, student-run clubs, and vocational electives.”
“Aside from extracurricular activities,” she continued, “our students also get to participate in both local and international trips and competitions. Some of the competitions in which our students regularly partake include the Conrad Challenge, in which 20 of them recently bagged a scholarship that’s worth $1.2 million; the World School Games; the World Robotic Challenge; the GTBank Masters Cup; the AISEN Public Speaking Competition; and so on.”
The educationist further said that the Nigerian entertainment industry is booming and that schools should endeavour to support students interested in the industry.
“As we can see, many Nigerians in the entertainment industry are enjoying amazing careers and gaining global recognition. Personally, I think schools should be invested in supporting students who dream of becoming musicians, comedians, actors and actresses, directors, scriptwriters, and so on. For us at Greensprings School, we provide relevant support by deliberately engaging our students in drama and music productions.
“By complementing academics with extracurricular activities, educators would be sure to prepare their students for life after school. We believe that Greensprings education prepares children for life, because there is adequate attention given to well-rounded learning,” Alabi said.
