A former military governor of Oyo State, General Oladayo Popoola (rtd.) has lauded the Mathematics Bee initiative organised as a veritable means of revamping the standard of education in the state.
Popoola, who was the chairman at the final and awards presentation of the competition in Oyo State, tagged “Maths Bee” in Ibadan, lamented the sorry state the education sector had been in and recognised the importance of mathematics, which he regarded as the basis for other subjects in reversing the downward trend of the education system in the state.
“These are the things we need in this country, to encourage our youths, especially the younger ones, our grandchildren to come up with ideas. Then, we will start seeing a four-year-old that is very good with computers.
“The standard of education is going down, it is not the fault of the teacher as the person who taught the teacher had the same issue, having the same problem, that is what I have seen”, Popoola said.
Another special guest at the event, Prof. Mojeed Akinsola said at the secondary school level in the state, things were not looking good but with the kind of Mathematics competition, things would get better in the state.
Akinsola commended all the 26 participants, who made it to the final, stating that they were all winners.
“One of the simplest subjects is Mathematics. So what you need to do as a student is to be focused and think about what you want to become in life. Once you have that goal and you continue to stay in line, you will be successful,” he said.
Two of the three overall winners, Nadia Akin and Toluwanimi Ogunmodede, appreciated the organisers of the competition, adding that though the competition was tough with determination and focus they emerged overall best.
In his remarks, the Convener, Maths Bee, Mr Seun Addie, said the rationale behind the programme was to contribute to children being better in Mathematics.
Addie said he had a degree in Mathematics, “and it is not as difficult as people think it is.”
He recalled the challenges in organising the event, which he said most people did not believe in it being a maiden meditation.
“I believe it is high time we looked at the methods we adopt in teaching some subjects, Mathematics for example.
“If the teacher’s teaching gives an impression that it is hard, the pupils would also believe that Mathematics is hard. Mathematics is not as difficult as it has been projected,” Addie said.
According to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the maiden edition of the Mathematics competition started at the local government level for all primary schools both private and public, where the best were taken to the zonal level before 26 pupils made It to the final.
NAN also reports that the best 11 pupils from various primary schools in the state were given medals while cash gifts were given to the overall best three pupils.
The first position went away with N100,000, while the second position got N60,000 and N40,000 was given to the pupil who came 3rd.
Other awards of recognition were given to notable personalities for their contributions to the progress of Maths Bee.
