Bauchi State Ministry of Education, under the leadership of its Commissioner, Dr Jamila Dahiru has taken a bold step towards revitalising zonal education offices and ensuring quality education across the state.
In the bid to reinvigorate zonal education staff, series of orientation programmes are being held for staff across the 3 zonal education offices aimed to revive zonal staff by clearly outlining individual duties and responsibilities, the programme seeks to reignite passion and commitment within the zonal offices.
Also, ASQAS (Bauchi State Quality Assurance Software ) through which zonal staff will be thoroughly familiarized with the new school inspection strategies to ensure consistent and effective evaluations.
Understanding key roles include Quality Assurance Officers (QAO), these officers are the cornerstone of the program, tasked with inspecting schools to assess educational quality as their evaluations will cover all 20 local governments in a staggered approach throughout the school year.
Inspectors are the lifeblood of daily inspections as these individuals visit assigned schools six times per term, twice a month with each Inspector overseeing three schools, submitting detailed reports to the Area Education Officer (AEO).
There is also Area Education Officers (AEO) who provide direct oversight for inspectors, collecting reports and ensuring they reach the zonal quality assurance officer and the EMIS (Education Management Information System) officer. Collaboration between these parties is crucial for harmonizing results and submitting them to the Ministry.
The types of Inspections are: Resumption Inspection led by the Ministry of Education and zonal offices, this inspection assesses the preparedness of teachers, staff, students, and the School Based Management Committee (SBMC) for the academic term.
Continuous quality assurance inspection is to be conducted during the 5th week of the term, this inspection evaluates the overall quality of education and student progress within schools.
There is also follow-up inspection which ensures that schools have implemented corrective measures identified during previous inspections while the last one is Daily Inspections which informs that Inspectors conduct these routine visits to monitor teaching and learning activities.
The Ministry is also promoting Embracing Technology for Enhanced Monitoring which is a significant leap forward by introducing digital E-Inspections.
Inspectors will be equipped with tablets or Android phones to record their evaluations, the Quality Assurance Department’s benchmark is to have inspectors visit one-third of the schools across all local governments in each term.
These visits will be geotagged, allowing the commissioner and all education managers from the ministry and parastatals to monitor progress in real time through a designated dashboard.
In Prioritizing Education Quality, the Ministry views monitoring and supervision as critical aspects of ensuring quality education as those found not cooperating with these vital initiatives will face disciplinary action.
This comprehensive program signifies Dr. Dahiru’s commitment to excellence in Bauchi State’s educational system. By empowering zonal offices, implementing clear guidelines, and leveraging technology, the Ministry is paving the way for a brighter future for students across the state.
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