FOr the average adult in Kaiama area of Bayelsa State, a typical day starts with farming in the morning and schooling in the evening. Having suffered untold neglect and deprivation for many years, even though it has been playing host since the early 1950s, to all Nigeria's oil and gas resources and provided about 90 per cent of the country's foreign exchange earnings, they are not really literate, so, they have taken to adult education with such passion and evangelical zeal that will elicit curiosity from the most impervious cynic.

Between 3.30 pm to 4 pm, you could see them in their numbers young adults, middle-aged, and old men and women with their books and school bags as they throng enthusiastically, to Rev. Proctor Memorial School I and Kaiama Girls Secondary School respectively, venue of the Free Adult Education Study Centre, an initiative of Family Reorientation Education & Empowerment (FREE) Africa Foundation, a non-governmental organisation founded by Mrs. Alaere Alaibe.

Inside their various classrooms, the way and manner they conduct themselves, listening attentively to their teachers, responding to teacher's instructions and exuding unusual keen to learn, leaves no one in doubt that a new renaissance in adult education is quietly sweeping through Bayelsa State.

Mr. Nwakwe Ebiteibina, a trained educationist and master degree holder in philosophy of education from University of Port Harcourt, is the headmaster in charge of Kaiama Free Adult Education Centre located at Kaiama Girls Grammar School and Reverend Proctor Memorial I respectively, spoke to Sunday Vanguard on the unusual zeal and progress made so far by these adult education pupils.

"We have the pre-nursery for those that have never gone to school before. When this adult education programme started about a year ago, these old men and women became so excited that they invited some other people who didn't know how to read and write to come and join them because some of them are employed in Local Education Authority, in secondary schools and local government councils as cleaners and so forth. The excitement was very high because they said: "Oh we want to go to school so that we could learn how to read and write, we too want to be graduates." Some of them have been here for less than four months and they can read and write their names correctly. We have structured the programme in such a way that even those who have been to school for the first time in their lives would be carried along. We have pre-nursery which eventually leads to nursery. The nursery group are people who at least have been to elementary school before for six months or one year but couldn' t continue, may be due to lack of funds.

This is kind of regaining the opportunity they've lost. We have those of them in primary, they have really attended primary school before, but because for the past twenty or more they could not continue. They are now saying; "this is our own opportunity to regain what we have lost before." In fact, the first day we started, we had about 350 pupils and the following day, the number went up to 500.

Because of my background as an educationist, I take this programme very seriously. Basically, this project is like my baby. From the consultations I have held with the director of FREE, Mr. Ojio Enizek, we don't intend to abandon the programme halfway. The programme has been well-structured from pre-nursery to nursery, then primary 1A, B, C, D, etc. The pupils will graduate from one class to the other. If the government agrees with us, they should compliment the effort by FREE Foundation Africa by providing Junior Secondary level for this kind of people to graduate to so that they can benefit from the opportunities which Western education offers.

The philosophy behind FREE

Africa Foundation's Adult Education programme in Bayelsa State is an exceptional initiative and we must commend Mrs. Alaere Alaibe for this humanitarian initiative. It is a very good and wonderful initiative that is why most of us are in support of it and are ready to do every sacrifice to ensure that it is sustained because this is a kind of renaissance, it is something that started sometime but stopped completely. In fact, I'm writing a book on Adult Education programme initiative by Mrs. Alaere Alaibe. The book is called "Renaissance of Adult Education in Bayelsa State".

If you look at it critically, you need to sympathise with these men and women who are in these adult education classes, not that they are not intellectually endowed but they didn't get the opportunity during their time. If at the time they started free and compulsory education in some parts of Nigeria, if they started along as at that time, most of these old men and women that you see that are stack illiterates or half-illiterates would have been graduates.

Big sacrifice

So, giving that opportunity which they missed before is very very commendable and that is why we are putting in everything to support it. Teaching is not easy, you must humble yourself to be able to teach these old men and women and it is a big sacrifice compared to what is being given to the teachers who are doing this job. As old men and women, there is this tendency of exhibiting some kinds of behaviour but we have to tolerate them in order to be able to teach them. Besides, all the teachers here are professional, so we are equal to the task. Another challenge is that of psychology: when you talk of people living their various homes to come and learn in a group, definitely they will have challenges psychologically and sociologically. We have instruction materials right now but we need more. Right now, some of my friends are asking me how they can get this kind of adult education school in their communities and I said to them "go and talk to your leaders". The whole thing b oils down to value system, Kaiama people applied for this and they have got it.

Our philosophy is not to have them half-baked so, as a result, we teach them social studies integrated science, moral education, English language and other core subjects. They do verbal and quantitative tests. Our objective is to empower these women because when you educate somebody, you have empowered the person economically."

Some of the pupils of the school enthusiastically spoke to Sunday Vanguard.

"Ah, we de learn oh. We never go school before but since they bring this school for here, we dey very serious because we wan know book well well. The school no dey disturb us. Like today, I go farm in the morning and for evening like this, I go come school, said Mrs. China Daunimigha, a 60 year old adult education pupil in pre-nursery class at the Rev. Proctor Memorial School I Study Centre.

For Mr. John Gigi, a 40 year old primary 2 pupil and father of four children, Education Study Centre, he could now read and write courtesy of the Adult Education.

Said he: "The school de very helpful. Now, I can at least read and write because I never knew how to read and write before. Now I can write very well. With the help of what I learn from this school, I will be able to train my four children in school."

For 38 year old Christiana Kennebi, a primary 6 pupil at Kaiama Girls Secondary School Study Centre, the Adult Education programme has brought about a positive change in her life.

"There is different in my life now than when I had not started attending this school. There are some people who are willing to come and join us. I want to encourage them because it is one of the best thing to be educated," she averred.