…Ask for chairs, solar lights to enhance learning
By Joyce Remi-Babayeju
The estwhile dilapidated Gifted School Gwagwalada is now wearing a new look thanks to the wave of Wike led infrastructural development and renovation of the school.
The students of the Gifted School Gwagwalada, who are now basking in the aesthetics of renovated school buildings, have praised the FCT minister , Barr. Nyesom Wike for giving the school a facelift, visibility, and a better learning environment.
The students thanked and praised the FCT Minister for bringing back to live the dilapidated structures of the school to a modern standard.
When the FCT Minister ‘s Press Corp feedback team visited the Gifted School the mood of students had changed with so much excitement and hapiness on their faces expressing their gratitude to the minister for changing the school environment into a modern one in just one year after his visit.
The students, however, asked that the minister should provide chairs and solar lights to enhance their learning process and give them a conducive learning environment.
First to speak to the feedback team during a visit over the weekend was the school Head Girl, Taofeequyah Abdulrahman in an elated mood said, “I am very happy about the renovation that has taken place in the school, if you came here before the renovation you would have seen how dilapidated the school used to be.
“Now the school looks appealing, from the paintings to the structures, it makes one happy to actually see a gifted school.”
“Now we can learn and concentrate under a conducive environment. To the Hon. Minister, Nyesom Wike, we the students are really happy and glad for the facelift you gave to our school. This has helped us a lot, and it has improved our standard.”
The Head Girl who spoke on behalf of the students appealed that the minister should provide chairs and solar lights for more comfort for the students.
She said, ” We appeal to the minister to include chairs in this renovation. There are instances where two students sit on one chair because there are not enough. Some are already broken; there are instances where students fall off as the chair breaks during classes or prep.”
“We also have this case of power outages, especially when we are reading at night. I think solar lamps will guarantee constant power supply, we appeal to the minister to consider these requests and add them to the improvement he has made in this school.”
Also, the School Head Boy,Binuyo Dabira Goodnews, who just returned from representing Nigeria in an international mathematics competition said, “ We sincerely want to appreciate the Minister, Nyesom Wike for what he has done in our school.”
“Before the renovation, often during meal times in the afternoon, the over 600 students usually have to wait in the sun outside the dining room for their food.”
” Eventually, some students will not be served, but with the intervention of the minister, all students can now enter at the same time and get seated to be served.”
“Now all windows in the school are well covered and fans working in the classes and in the hostels.”
The students also requested for computers in the computer lab. “Functional computers in the lab would boost academic performance,” the students said.
The school’s Library prefect, Ikenta Ifechukwu Belina also expressed her joy saying, “The school library today wears a new look, the paint is refreshing with clean walls, these make us feel at ease while reading. The atmosphere is now conducive for learning.”
However she expressed her concern over the continuous use of outdated books in the library. She appealed to the Minister for new and modern books as well as “Digital books and materials, adding that the world had gone digital.”
She also noted that the school has no school bus, “we always go out for competitions, we will need a bus that can facilitate our movement for competitions,” she pleaded.
The students also requested for computers in the computer lab. “Functional computers in the lab would boost academic performance,” the students said.
The Principal of the Gifted School, Gwagwalada, Mr. Bello Adams Audu who spoke to the team said that the previous situation of the school was just a “state of sorrow “.
He noted that facilities in the 30 year old school were already in a state of dilapidation before Wike’s intervention.
“ I really want to thank the minister because we were almost losing hope before his arrival. The school has been given a face lift and it is now beautiful.”
“Before the face lift, the roof of the staff room was almost falling, the toilets were bad. Before the renovation, you would pity the staff and students of the school because the situation was bad.”
“That gave room for rodents and reptiles to live among us; students started going out side for open defecation and the situation affected teaching and learning. ”
” Today, we thank God, Wike has come, and the story has changed. Fans in the classrooms and hostels are now working, the students are happy and are doing better now cademically,” the Principal stated.