Jolly Phonics: Osun Commences Second Round Training Of Teachers

By Francis Ezediuno

In order to enhance qualitative teaching among pupils in the Elementary schools in Osun, the state goverment has commenced the implementation of the use of Jolly Phonics method in the teaching of English Language in Elementary schools across the state.

This, according to the Executive Chairman of the Osun State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Prince Felix Awofisayo is to instill literacy, numeracy and life skills in pupils at various levels of primary education, as well as to identify, write and manipulate numbers at various levels.

He said the aim of the exercise is to enhance the literacy, reading and comprehension skills of pupils in the state which are unarguably necessary prerequisites for an improved standard education.

Prince Awofisayo, in his address at the official opening ceremony of the Jolly Phonics training of Grade 2 teachers under the UBEC 2016 TPD programme at the Osogbo centre recently, noted that failure to achieve these would lead to the inability of the child to elicit the correct responses in literacy and numeracy at the appropriate levels.

In his words, “It will be disheartening if a child in grade one is unable to neither identify nor pronounce correctly 2-letter word or even a grade 4 pupil is unable to read his examination paper.

“These are terrible and unwanted in our classrooms considering the huge sum of funds the governor has committed over the years into infrastructural facilities in schools”.

He hinted that Osun SUBEB commenced the training/capacity building of teachers of Elementary schools on the use of Phonics method in teaching of English Language in schools as a means of nipping the decay which majorly begins from the elementary level.

He disclosed that in 2017, Grade 1 teachers were trained which led to tremendous improvements in the current grade two pupils.

“To continue this trend with the pupils now in grade two, their teachers need to be trained while the trained Grade one teachers handles the new intakes in grade one”.

He maintained that the effort was a laudable one with its aim of enhancing reading and writing skills from the foundation levels in schools, adding that the Jolly Phonics method had been nationally and internationally proven to be effective.

He therefore called on teachers and consultants to ensure it works in the State of Osun as well.

For maximum effectiveness, the Osun SUBEB helmsman stated that about 800 Grade Two teachers were being trained in six centres across the state simultaneously under the 2016 UBEC TPS programme.

He used the opportunity to appreciate the efforts of the partners which include; UBEC Abuja, the ILSD, the LGEA officials, the teachers just as he was optimistic that none of the class teachers would be found wanting at the time of evaluation.

Meanwhile, the Osun SUBEB Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Fatai Kolawole stated that Osun is not there yet because it had not achieved total success in the implementation of Jolly Phonics but the state is in a hurry to ensure that the training enjoys all round success.

While stressing that reading and writing should be fun, he charged teachers to use the teaching skills they have learnt to impart their students.