By Dennis Agbo

The Catholic Diocese of Enugu has introduced a skills development curriculum in primary education to teach pupils elementary technical courses that will help them build basic skills from the cradle.

Such skills include computer and internet appreciation and operation; Electrical/Solar-Inverter installation; wood work and Alumaco creation; Musical Art; Solution production of soap, paints, etc; Fashion and Designing; Integrated farming and Food processing.

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In his homily during the presentation of the St. Joseph School of Basic Skills Development Ugwogo-Nike in Enugu East local government area, the Auxiliary Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Most Rev. Ernest Obodo said that the skills development school will uplift education standard, noting that in other climes, children begin from the cradle to combine learning with practical handcraft.

Obodo said that skills education creates faster employment and generates wealth and prayed to God to use the school to bring glory and upliftment to the people of Ugwogo-Nike community.

“We congratulate Rev. Fr. Michael Okoh for the beautiful school, one of the best in Nigeria, it will now uplift education standard in Ugwogo. In other climes children begin from cradle to learn how to practice handcraft. 

That will generate employment and wealth creation,” Bishop Obodo said.

Founder of the School and Secretary of Catholic Primary Education Commission in Enugu Diocese, Very Rev. Fr. Dr. Michael Okoh said his long time study of primary education revealed that there were so many important subjects are just done theoretically and not practically.

“Because the practical aspect is lacking, the children do not implement that after school or even while at school, that made me to think how we can make it possible so that a child will finish may be primary six , even JS3 and be self employed and become an entrepreneur, so that you don’t begin to look for work anywhere.

“That made me begin to look into those subjects that one can also practically handle  such as Basic science and Technology that covers a lot of things that one can practically do such as electrical works and solar installation is also into that  and then computer is also technology and it will help our children very well. 

There is also the prevocational study which is vocational studies, but because our children are not grounded practically they come out and there are a lot of skills related to that such as Fashion and Designing and so many other crafts. You can also talk about cultural and creative arts; music is there, playing of organ, recorders and others.  

“So because of that I decided to set up this school so that we can now combine basic education with skills development whereby the basic education system will be going on in basic 1, 2 and 3, children will be learning how to form syllabus and words  and when they get to primary four, basic 4 basic 5 and basic 6 they can then be introduced to these various workshops and various skills, from there they can now continue so that before ever they finish JS3 they would have been trained very well in one thing or the other, Rev. Fr. Okoh said.”

He disclosed that the school will employ artisans who would teach the pupils various technical skills in the very practical manner that they are done in the outside society workshops, noting that as a mission school, the cost of education will be subsidized.

Delivering a paper, Rev. Fr. Nnaemeka Udeonu said that the school was an unusual but very seriously needed type of novelty in the land, geared towards building the whole person right from the cradle of human formation.

The clergy noted that nothing apart from colossal failure of leadership or absence of vision in the very art of governance would stop the government of the day from and the future from celebrating the Rev. Fr. Okoh model of leadership and tapping from the manifestation of ingenuity.