Lagos public schools battle overpopulation, crowded classrooms stifle learning
12th October 2023

Public schools in Lagos State are grappling with the challenge of overpopulation, hampering effective learning by pupils. SAMUEL BOLAJI, who visited public schools across the state, reports

Mrs  Deborah Akande’s children have always attended public or government-owned schools in the Ikorodu area of Lagos where she lives. She refused to join the bandwagon when private schools became popular among parents in the neighbourhood. By sending her children to public school, she didn’t have to worry about tuition and that meant lesser financial burden for the family. But in September this year, Akande withdrew her children, Ayo and Femi, from the public school and took them to a private school.

“My daughter, Ayo, who has just been promoted to SS1, has been complaining about how difficult it has been for her to learn. There are over 100 students in her class, and she said learning had been very difficult there,” Akande explained in an interview with The PUNCH.

“Even though I don’t have much money, I had no other choice but to withdraw her and her brother, Femi, who had similar complaints, from the school.
“I have now enrolled them in a private school, and that’s because I want the very best for my children,” Deborah said, heaving a heavy sigh.

Lagos State, Nigeria’s commercial hub, is the most populous state in the country. Despite its relatively smaller land mass, the state is home to over 20 million persons. The implication is that there is pressure on public infrastructures or utilities, and public schools are not an exception. Amid soaring student enrollments and limited resources, Lagos public schools are facing unprecedented challenges that threaten the quality of education and the future of its young learners.

Like Akande, another parent in Ikorodu, who gave her name simply as Mrs Benson, said she could no longer resist the urge to withdraw her son from public school when “I noticed that my son had lost interest in reading. He no longer looked motivated to study.”

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An overpopulated state

Lagos is known for its rapid urbanisation and population growth. Recent estimates put the population of Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre at over 20 million. This surge in residents’ population has led to a surge in students enrolling in public schools. As a result, classrooms are bursting at the seams, and school infrastructure is struggling to keep pace.

A report by Bscholarly, an education website and online resource centre created to help students all over the world in their academic pursuits, noted that “The rapid explosion of the population of Lagos from just a few thousand people to 22 million people occupying the 452 square miles of the city is unprecedented. This unprecedented growth has far-reaching consequences. The effects of Lagos overpopulation are dire. The facilities and amenities that were put in place many years ago for the few people living there have been stretched to their limits and beyond by the excess number of people living there now.”

The education system is not spared from the effects of overcrowding in Lagos.
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Consequences of overcrowding in public schools

Overpopulation in Lagos public schools has far-reaching consequences. The most immediate is the strain on resources. Textbooks and learning materials are in short supply, and school buildings are deteriorating due to the sheer volume of students. This overcrowding also affects the overall quality of education, with students struggling to focus and teachers unable to provide personalised instruction.

“Public schools are purpose-built,” said the DG, Office of Education Quality Assurance, Seriki-Ayeni. According to her, they are built with large spaces compared to their private counterparts.

However, our correspondent observed during his visit to some schools that some large classrooms were packed with more crowds than the capacity of the structure. Broken desks were also observed, with many of the students standing during lectures.

Speaking briefly with The PUNCH, a teacher in Ketu, who pleaded anonymity, said, “There are never enough materials to cater to the learning needs of the mammoth crowd we have in our classrooms.

“There is also pressure on physical infrastructure, including desks and the buildings themselves. But what can we do?”
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Source and complete article: https://punchng.com/lagos-public-schools-battle-overpopulation-crowded-classrooms-stifle-learning/