Secondary school boys for Bauchi vex protest afta dem separate dem from class wit girls?

On Monday, 27 September, 2022, some students hold minor protest for Bauchi state for north west wey dey northeast Nigeria regarding some new development for education for di state wey no sweet dia belle.

Several reports across some Nigerian newspapers tok say di students dey protest say goment decision to separate dem from girls for classrooms.

For di video wey some pipo share on social media, di students wey some of dem hold leaves for hand to show say dem dey protest bin dey sing ‘bama so’ as dem dey waka for street. For Hausa e mean ‘we no want’, to show dia anger over di new policy.

One teacher for Government Comprehensive Day Secondary School Bauchi confam wetin happun to BBC Pidgin.

Usman Tahir confam say di protest na about separation of girls from boys for class.

“Di protest na by students of comprehensive, Kofar Wambai and Kofar Idi schools and wetin dem want na for goment to allow boys and girls for same class and dey vex say tins don change.”

“I dey dia through out di protest yesterday and di student bin protest for about one hour come later separate.” E tok.

‘Only girls classroom policy’

But commissioner of education for Bauchi state Dr Aliyu Tilde tell BBC Pidgin say those reports no dey correct.

“Our schools resume on Monday wey kick start our policy of only girls schools or classrooms and we no get issue for anywia except some few students of Kofar Wambai and Kofar Idi.”

“Those students bin dey against dia transfer to Government Comprehensive Day Secondary School na wetin happun be dat, majority of students dey okay with di policy and dey continue to learn in peace.”

Ahmed Mohammed na journalist wey dey work for Bauchi and e also yan say contrary to several media reports, di protest no be only about class separation as some media dey make am look like but also about transfer of students as a result of di new policy.

“So wetin di students tok for yesterday (Monday) protest be say di new policy don move some of dem to oda schools wey be sometin dem no like.”

“But generally, di protest na minor one wey no go far from di school before di students scata to dia various locations.”

Na few days ago, ministry of education for di state release ‘safe space for girls’ circular wey separate girls and boys from di same class and in some instances from di same school.

For interview e grant tori pipo before di policy kick off on Monday, di Commissioner of Education Dr Tilde say dem take dis decision to stop ‘moral decay’ wey dey worsen for secondary schools.

E even give example of how one teacher catch some of im students dey engage in immoral act while e dey teach for class.

Wetin di new policy tok?

Some of di items wey dey inside dis new policy include di following:

  • Wia two or more schools dey exist within one vicinity, at least one -preferably di one at di centre of di town go dey allocated to girls only.
  • Wia na only one school but e dey operate in di morning only and enough teachers dey ground, di girls go come in di morning and di boys in di afternoon.
  • Wia e no dey possible to run shifts if di school dey big enough, make dem separate am into boys’ and girls’ sections.
  • Wia sectioning no dey possible but e get streams of A and B on di same arm (like SS 1A and SS 1B), make di boys get allocation for one class and di girls di oda. 
  • Wia di population dey low and na only one class for each stream, di boys go dey on one side of di class and girls at di oda side.
Dr Aliyu Tilde

BBC
Dr Aliyu Tilde na di commissioner of education for Bauchi state

Wetin dey obtainable for other states for northern Nigeria?

Unlike dia counterparts for southern Nigeria, many states across northern Nigeria no dey allow mixing of boys and girls for di same class for secondary schools.

Shehu Mohammed na secondary school teacher for Kano state with 15 years experience and e tok say for di state and many odas for north na boys only schools and girls only schools dey.

“Separation of class or schools between girls and boys no be new tin for northern Nigeria because many of us grow up to see am like dat.”

“For example for Kano state, no single goment school wey mix boys and girls for same school talk more of class, so na always girls schools and boys schools different.”