The Lagos State government, through its Ministry of Education, has declared in unequivocal terms that there is no textbook teaching and or encouraging immoral activities in the curriculum of the State public and private schools.
The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Mr. Adesina Odeyemi who made the clarification over the weekend allayed the fears of stakeholders and concerned Lagosians, whom he noted, had inundated him with calls about news trending in some social media platforms that the government approved and included in the curriculum, a Social Studies textbook, “Religion and National Values – Social Studies for Universal Basic Education 7 (JSS I)” by S.O. Omotuyole.
Odeyemi noted that the book in reference is a new book which was not part of the books reviewed and approved in the year 2013 or at any other time by the Ministry. He revealed, however, that the Ministry is already in the process of another review and is still collecting books from interested book publishers for another round of book review and approvals that will be released later in the year.
He stressed that “This book, without prejudice to the intention of the writer and the opinion of its publishers, has not been reviewed, recommended nor approved for use in any of the Lagos State public and private secondary schools”.
The Permanent Secretary, therefore, declared that any attempt to attribute the unruly behavior of a few students of Ikoyi and Falomo Senior Schools to any book promoting immorality within the school system is the peak of disservice to a government that has committed both human and material resources to raising the standard of education in the State.