Graduation Parties Or Extortion By Other Means

*Students, pupils pay thousands, go home with plastic items, others

*Be considerate, NAPTAN tells school owners

*States ban events

In the days of yore, the academic session was brought to a close with Prize Giving Day, during which pupils and students would also present drama sketches and playlets, principally to teach morals. Such events were held at no cost to parents and guardians; rather, some pupils and students who excelled would go home with prizes.

Now, the situation has changed, especially with private schools that have grown huge in number across the country. End-of-session or graduation parties now hold, as well as end-of-the-year parties.

The parties are not free, as huge levies are imposed on parents and guardians.

Checks by Vanguard in some schools in Lagos showed that the least levy paid was N20,000 per child, while some paid N60,000 or more, depending on the neighbourhood where the school is located.

New levels of graduation

With private schools, a pupil now graduates from Creche to Nursery class. He will move from Nursery to Primary School level.

After completing Primary School education, there is graduation to move to Junior Secondary School class, and from there to Senior Secondary School. Finally, he moves to seek admission to a tertiary institution.

However, some state governments and even the Federal Ministry of Education have limited graduation ceremonies to terminal classes in primary and secondary schools, that is, Primary Six and SSS 3.

Parents’ experiences

Parents and guardians who shared their experiences with Vanguard mostly slammed school owners for subtly fleecing and extorting them. According to them, levies such as graduation levy, inter-house sports levy and end-of-the-year party levy are subtle ways of putting additional financial pressure on them.

A parent, whose boy attends a private primary school in the Ejigbo area of Lagos, but who craved anonymity, said, “My boy is moving from Nursery to the primary school level, and we paid N35,000 for the graduation party. It was a hell of a time to get a seat at the venue and to be served rice and a bottle of soft drink. They also gave us plastic items as souvenirs, and that was all.

“I know that come December, the end-of-the-year party will also come up. The painful thing is that one has to pay because young ones won’t want to be left behind. They would put pressure on you that their mates have paid and that their teachers are saying they must pay,” she said.

For Mrs Johnson, whose child graduated from a private primary school in the Satellite Area of Lagos, the money she paid looked a bit well utilised.

“We paid N55,000 per child, and they gave us food and drinks. After the event, they gave leather bags to our children. The leather bag, which could be used to carry items if one is travelling, was of good quality. Surely, it would not have sold for less than N35,000 in the market. I know that they would have bought the items in bulk, but it is better than giving plastic buckets and other low-cost items to the pupils.

“That is not to say they did not make some profit; they surely made,” she stated.

For Adeola Babatunde, there is a need for school owners to understand the times.

“Yes, school owners would say it is not compulsory for every student to pay, that it is optional, but we all know the emotional impact such would have on a child if he sees his mates going for the party and he is not joining them. You cannot ask a child you have not paid for to attend. If he attends, he won’t be sent away, but he won’t be given food or any souvenir, no matter how low-rated the souvenir is, and that is inflicting emotional injury on the innocent child,” he opined.

Federal, state governments ban graduation parties

The Federal Government has restricted or prohibited unauthorised and non-terminal school graduation parties — such as those for kindergarten, nursery and primary transitions — to curb the financial exploitation of parents and maintain moral standards.

The action stops schools from forcing parents to pay high fees for graduation gowns, parties and souvenirs. It is also intended to stop inappropriate behaviours, rowdiness and foreign social trends often copied during end-of-session bashes. The intention is also to direct attention back to core learning rather than expensive social events.

Similarly, states like Edo, Benue, Ondo, Osun and Imo have enforced measures to regulate or restrict graduation ceremonies at various school levels.

In Ogun State, the education department instructed all public and private schools to cease holding graduation ceremonies and end-of-session parties, citing financial burdens on families.