Sweetthinkers, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) says it is poised to boost excellence among pupils in public primary schools in the country.
The Project Manager of Sweetthinkers, Mrs Favour Akinola, disclosed this on Monday in Lagos, during the organisation’s Academic Excellence Award Initiative – Stage 3.
Akinola said that through the initiative, public primary school pupils would be able to compete favourably with their counterparts in private schools.
She said the initiative was aimed at challenging the perception that pupils in public schools could not perform at the same level as those in private institutions.
According to her, the competition is structured in stages to progressively test the pupils’ academic abilities.
“The first and second stages were paper-based examinations. In the first stage, more than 2,000 pupils participated, while about 200 pupils qualified for the second stage.
“The third stage, which is computer-based, involves 40 pupils, and eight of them will proceed to the final stage,” she said.
Akinola explained that a mock computer-based test was organised ahead of the third stage to help the pupils familiarise themselves with computers, noting that many of them might not have had prior exposure to using such technology for exams.
She said the final stage of the competition would be conducted in a grand setting and hosted as a live academic contest.
“At the final stage, the pupils will compete and the top three will emerge as winners. They will receive scholarship opportunities to attend secondary school.
“The scholarship will continue as long as the pupils maintain in good academic performance,” the project manager said.
She added that the programme would also provide infrastructural support to the schools attended by the finalists.
According to her, inspections will be carried out in the schools to identify areas where support is most needed.
“We want to ensure that the assistance provided to the schools addresses their real needs, whether it is renovation or other forms of infrastructural support,” she said.
Akinola said the initiative was designed to create excitement around learning and motivate pupils to strive for academic excellence.
She said that the 2025 edition of the programme would have its final stage in May, while plans were underway to expand the initiative to more states across the country.
According to her, the programme is expected to become an annual event dedicated to supporting and improving public primary education in Nigeria.
