Adefowoju Ayodele

U.S.A: Regents Drop Teacher Literacy Test Seen as Discriminatory

The Board of Regents on Monday eliminated a requirement that aspiring teachers in New York State pass a literacy test to become certified after the test proved controversial because black and Hispanic candidates passed it at significantly lower rates than white candidates.

The Regents also moved forward with a proposal that would allow some students who failed another test, aimed at evaluating practical skills like lesson planning and assessment, to be certified as teachers based on their grades and professors’ recommendations.

Together, the steps signal how much the Regents’ approach has changed under the current chancellor, Betty A. Rosa, after several years of efforts to raise the bar for entering the profession.

MOTIVATIONAL: Lady Expelled From Covenant Becomes Best Student At Veritas University Abuja Nigeria

                            
According to a report from a post on Myschool webpage, A young lady identified as Obazele Patricia has narrated how she was expelled from Covenant University in her 300level, but now graduating as the best student in Veritas University.

She shared the testimony on twitter stating how she was afraid to start all over again, remembering that fact that most of her classmates were married with kids while some are working.

She further explained that at some point, she was determined to succeed and make her parents proud, she said she read all night on an empty stomach while praying and believing God.

"Truly, it isn't how far, but how well Three Awards, like really i graduated as
Best Graduating Student, Accounting Department
Best Graduating Student, College of Management Sciences
Overall Best Graduating Student" she said.

Dear reader this is a call for us all that its not too late for you to start again in any situation you find yourself and you think all hope and help is gone, don't give up just like Obazele Partricia, don't judge yourself with the performance and achievements of your friends but look forward to working hard to becoming a better person than the friends your seeing now.     

Congratulations to her!!!

JAMB: JAMB Confirms Exam Dates for 2017 UTME

The Joint Admission And Matriculation Board has officially confirmed that the 2017 UTME (the actual examination) will commence 6 May and end on 20 May, 2017 (excluding May 12, 2017 because of Candidates sitting for WAEC's Further Mathematics examination).

That simply means that the examination will commence 2 weeks after the end of registration.

You can consult the official JAMB 2017 Registration guidelines for the detailed registration timeline and information.

If there are no challenges, the examination is expected to last for only 14 days.

JAMB: How to Get The 2017 UTME Registration E-PINs

Concerning where to purchase the Registration forms or e-pins for 2017 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), please note that it can be purchased at the JAMB CBT accredited centres and JAMB Offices Nationwide at the cost of Five Thousand Naira (N5000) only. 

However, an extra Five hundred Naira will be charged for the new book: "In Dependence"

The accredited centres have been empowered to assist in this regard.

All CBT centres have been mandated to select any of the participating banks.

These banks are to be present in the premises of the accredited centres for the purposes of collection all fees. No centre-staff is allowed to conduct cash transaction with the candidates.

As it is the practice, accredited centres are allowed to charge not more than Seven Hundred Naira (₦700) only as registration fee. Any centre that charges more than Seven Hundred Naira (₦700) should be reported to JAMB for appropriate sanctions.

Refer to the official 2017 UTME Registration guidelines for further details

Once the registration begins by Monday 20th March, 2017 you only have to visit the closest JAMB accredited centre, purchase your e-pins and process your registration there at the same time.

JAMB: JAMB begins sale of 2017 UTME forms March 20 – Spokesman

The Joint Admission and Matriculations Board (JAMB) says it will begin the sale of the 2017 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) forms on March 20.

Dr Fabian Benjamin, JAMB’s Head of Public Relations made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Bwari.

Benjamin said the date was fixed following an agreement that was reached on the harmonization of the examination timetable at a meeting with other exam bodies on Jan. 24.

“We will begin the sale of the admission forms on March 20, while UTME is scheduled to hold in May.

“We are ready to commence the sales of the 2017/2018 admission forms for UTME and Direct Entry forms on the said date,’’ he said.

NAN reports that JAMB recently emphasized that it would organise an optional mock examination before the 2017 UTME.

Based on information published on its Twitter handle @JAMBHQ, the date of the Mock examination will soon be announced.

According to the board, the purpose of the mock examination is to allow candidates “FEEL’’ what the main examination will be like.

The board, however, said the mock examination would be “completely optional’’ as it would not be a pre-requirement for writing the actual UTME.

It added that candidates can choose to either take the mock examination or not.

The board also disclosed that Interswitch Payment on the e-Facility portal has been temporarily disabled and that the list of its accredited centres soon be announced.

Nigeria: Teachers council to conduct first professional exams this year

The Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) says it will conduct the first professional examination for teachers before the end of 2017.

The examination, known as the Pre-Qualifying Examinations (PQE), would serve as a pre-requisite for admission of teachers into the profession.

Prof. Josiah Ajiboye, the Registrar and Chief Executive of the council, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Tuesday.

According to him, “With regard to the PQE -Professional qualifying examination-the people given the contract, the consultants, they have delivered the test items and we have the custody presently.

JAMB: 2 Compulsory Novels for JAMB 2017 UTME Use of English

JAMB has recommended 2 Compulsory Novels that candidates are to read before their exams, starting 6th May, 2017. The 2 Novels are;

1. "In Dependence" by Sarah Ladipo Manyika for UTME Candidates

2. "The Last Days at Forcados High School" by A.H. Mohammed for Direct Entry Candidates

According to the instructions, candidates will be tested on these 2 novels in Use of English, which is compulsory for every candidate, regardless of the course you intend to study in school.

A lot more JAMBites are familiar with OPTION 2 above, being that it was the only Novel that was used in testing during the 2016 UTME. OPTION 1 however, is a newly introduced Novel for 2017.

While a lot more students are only interested in buying registration forms, they neglect to look deep into other instructions, which may be critical to the success of their exams in May. That's why Myschool has decided to dwell on this important issue, via this thread.

From the instructions released by JAMB, it is clear that "In Dependence" ought to be for UTME candidates alone, while "The Last Days at Forcados High School" will be used by Direct Entry Candidates.

If you go by the instruction stated above, this simply means that UTME candidates will get questions asked from the book "In Dependence", while Direct Entry will get questions from "The Last Days at Forcados High School".

On ‘Day Without Women,’ Two Districts Cancel School

School districts in Virginia and North Carolina are telling students to stay home on Wednesday, on a nationwide day of protest called “A Day Without Women,” because so many staff members do not plan to show up for work.

In Alexandria Public Schools in Northern Virginia, more than 300 staff members have asked for the day off, prompting district officials to take the extraordinary step of canceling class. The superintendent said its 18 schools would not have enough teachers on Wednesday.

“This is not a decision that was made lightly,” the superintendent, Alvin L. Crawley, said, adding that “it is not based on a political stance or position.”

In the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools in North Carolina, a “significant” number of teachers have said they will skip work on Wednesday, the district said. The roughly 12,300 students are to stay home, and the day will be an optional teacher workday. “It is my determination that we will not have enough staff to safely run our school district,” the interim superintendent, Jim Causby, said in a letter on the district’s website.

 Both school districts cited the observance of International Women’s Day as the reason for the staffing shortages. Nationwide, more than three-quarters of all teachers are women, according to the National Center for Educational Statistics.

The leaders of the Women’s March on Washington, which drew more than a million demonstrators the day after the inauguration of President Trump, have encouraged women to strike on Wednesday to highlight their economic importance and power. The movement, which grew out of concerns about Mr. Trump and has spawned protests around the world, has emerged as a vocal champion of women’s rights.

The protest on Wednesday comes a few weeks after another protest, “Day Without Immigrants,” had a similar effect on businesses. Immigrant workers displayed their contribution to the labor force by staying home, forcing businesses to close. Students in some schools districts also stayed home and others walked out during class.

Nigeria: FUT Minna sacks 46 students

The Federal University of Technology, Minna (FUTMinna) has expelled 22 students and withdrawn 24 others.

A newsletter published by the institution noted that the expulsion and withdrawal was approved at the 414th meeting of the University Senate.

Twenty-two students were expelled for alleged involvement in examination malpractice during the second semester of the 2015/2016 session, while 24 others, comprising of three 300-Level students and 21 100-Level students were withdrawn for poor academic performance.

Earlier, the management had warned that it would not tolerate examination malpractice and poor performance.

U.S: Ms. DeVos’s Fake History About School Choice

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos offered a positively Orwellian explanation Monday of why historically black colleges and universities were created in the United States. Incredibly, she suggested that they were “real pioneers” in the school-choice movement and “started from the fact that there were too many students in America who did not have equal access to education.”

The Education Department’s own website — on a page titled “Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Higher Education Desegregation” — offers a more accurate history. These colleges, it shows, were created, beginning in the 19th century, as a direct response to rigid racial segregation when the doors of white colleges were typically closed to African-Americans.

Trump’s Call for School Vouchers Is a Return to a Campaign Pledge

President Trump, returning to a promise that won him cheers on the campaign trail, signaled in his first address to Congress on Tuesday that he will move aggressively to allow more public school students to use tax money to pay for tuition at public charter schools, private schools and even religious schools.

At rallies last year across the country, Mr. Trump said over and over again that he would use the nation’s schools to fix what he described as failing inner cities and a virtual education crisis that most hurts black and Hispanic children. In North Carolina, he called school choice “the great civil rights issue of our time.” In Florida, he declared that “every disadvantaged child in this country” should have access to school choice.