As the West African Examinations Council, WAEC and the National Examinations Council, NECO, year in, year out, release its results on students’ examination performance, it is no longer news that the average Nigerian student performs below average in Mathematics and English Language. This ugly situation has given many stakeholders in the sector concern. Though many stakeholders have tried to come out with some steps to address the anomaly, the situation still persists. It was against this backdrop that a young Nigerian author, Babs Olugbemi launched his new book, The Students’ Fortress.

‘”Most importantly, I want to see how the institutions we are visiting run the theoretical and practical aspects of their curriculum, so that when we come back, we can introduce same in our schools.’’ Also, the Head, Department of Technical College, Umunze, Simon Nwafor, said: ‘’My expectation is for us to see and learn what we need to improve the technical and vocational educational system.

Mathematics is not every student’s best subject. The statistics of mass failures churned out in qualifying examinations across the country can attest to this fact. However, there are still quite a number who have excelled greatly in the subject. Prof. Mohammed Ibrahim is one of such. He has spent his whole life around the subject-studying it, teaching it, and teaching people studying to teach it. Now, the President of the Mathematics Association of Nigeria, he gives Saturday School Life, SSL, into why students fail the subject, and what can be done about it.

Educationists are divided over the recent 2015 Global Monitoring Report of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO, that Nigeria now has the highest number of out-of-school children and one of the worst education systems in the world.

THE Minister of Education, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau has tasked the West African Examinations Council, WAEC to adopt global best practices in strategic human capital development process of member nations.