John Dada, CEO Fantsuam Foundation, shared with The Dadamac team his vision and plans for Maths and ICT clubs across Kaduna state. John has tremendous experience of delivering ICT and Integrated educational programmes to his local rural community in Kafanchan,Nigeria
"The number of people who have poor numeracy skills far exceeds the equivalent figure for poor literacy. School-leavers who have failed to master basic maths are more likely to end up jobless, in prison or pregnant at a young age. Poor numeracy is the hidden problem that affects the Nigerian economy and ruins individuals’ chances in life. Poor performances in competitive examinations and math phobia (fear of mathematics) have led many students to get involved in examination malpractices.
Mathematics is very important to the development of any nation and is critical to the development of science and technology. Poor performance of students in Mathematics is a cause of concern for all students, parents and especially for the future of Nigeria.
The Maths & ICT Club is one way of making mathematics friendly to all students so that within 5 years, mathematics would be the subject all members of our club perform best in. The Club will also support the life-long training of our Mathematics Teachers because our students cannot rise above the quality of our teachers. The Maths & ICT Club is our local attempt to develop a blueprint to save our members from the unnecessary math phobia common among youths in Nigeria. One of our goals is to make mathematics fun and enjoyable thereby drastically reducing Math phobia and the subsequent poor performance.
The inclusion of ICTs in our Club’s remit makes this an even more exciting activity as our members get exposed to ICTs quite early and become confident in using it for their career development and edutainment.
The Network of Maths and ICT Clubs will have regular competition and fairs where we share new knowledge, skills and resources. We shall work closely with Old Student Associations, Community Development Associations, Corporate bodies and Community leaders to encourage their support for the network and for specific MACT clubs.
Membership Criteria
1. All secondary school students in Kaduna State are eligible for membership. There will not be discrimination in terms of gender, tribe or religion in all activities of the Club
2. Other age groups can be considered for membership on individual basis
3. All members will sign up to a Code of Conduct which includes non-discriminatory attitudes, non-involvement in examination malpractices, regular attendance at club meetings, participation in club events such as competition and designing programs that will be of interest to their peers, payment of means-tested subscription dues, support other group members to acquire new skills, politeness and respect for each other.
4. Each Club will have its officials (Chair, Vice Chair, Sec, Financial Sec, PRO) elected annually to manage the club. An annual Activities and Financial Report will be prepared by the Executive and copies submitted to the Principal, the Patron(s) and Fantsuam Foundation
5. It is the responsibility of each club to identify their Senior Friends, who can be parents, ex-students, or members of their local community who have interest and commitment in the school’s progress. Such Senior Friends will assist the club to meet costs that are beyond what the Clubs subscription income can cover e.g. travels to other schools for competition, purchase of Maths and ICT resource materials, linkages with national and international Maths and ICT Clubs for youths, etc "
The photo above from Fantsuam Foundation shows students using the Community Communication Center.