- Secondary school teachers and educators from Plateau Central Senatorial District have pledged to tackle violent extremism in their schools through education strategies and relevant tools.
Secondary school teachers and educators from Plateau Central Senatorial District have pledged to tackle violent extremism in their schools through education strategies and relevant tools.
This pledge was reached in Pankshin LGA of the state, when 100 teachers and educators from 20 schools in the zone gathered at a capacity building workshop.
The workshop which was organized by the Institute of Governance and Social Research (IGSR) in collaboration with Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF), had
participants drawn from Bokkos, Mangu, Kanke, Kanam and Pankshin which makes up the five LGAs from the zone.
The training according to organises concept note, will aid the establishment and sustainability of peace clubs in the schools as well as to build community resilience within secondary schools at grassroots level.
“Over the years, violent extremist’ activities have plagued the country and particularly secondary schools.
This has captured the attention of the international community and as a result there has been increasing support to civil society organizations across the country to launch interventions to prevent violent extremism through education.
“Therefore, it is imperative that the capacities of teachers and educators are strengthened to develop, implement and integrate violent extremism prevention into curricula, teaching and learning.
“It is in light of this that the Institute of Governance and Social Research (IGSR) is organizing a one day capacity training workshop for 100 teachers and educators from 20 schools in Plateau central zone,” the concept note partly read.
Speaking at the event, a teacher from Government Secondary School Wokkos in Pankshin, Nenmor Gobum, said they have been equipped on how to prevent, tackle/handle violent extremism among their students.
He said they will do all it takes to inculcate into the students morality via moral instructions, enlightenment and strategic teachings.
In her remarks, Rose Julius, a Lterature in English teacher with Good Shepherd College Pankshin said she will inculcate into her students the dangers of anger and how to avoid it, saying that a controlled temperament is an important step in preventing violent extremism.
She said from what she has learnt, she has been equipped on how to curtail bad habits exhibited by students, and that they will boost all their different activities in the school in a manner that the children will be continually coached on moral uprightness and good living.
Among the activities, according to her are drama presentations, poem recitations, press and current affairs/dramatic and debating clubs, among others.
Meanwhile, a retired educationist who presented a paper at the workshop, Ajik Yakubu, said the main target of the workshop was to equip the teachers because they have found out that violent extremisms actually begins from the school before spreading to the larger society.
Yakubu called on the teachers to humble themselves enough in order to be close to their students so that they can monitor and regulate their activities/habits of the students so as to mould them into useful instruments in the society.
