Josfyn Uba and Christine Onwuachumba
Yetunde Ajibade has her hands in many pies. A trained lawyer and educationist, she had overseen the strategic direction of Ace Michaels Integrated Services Limited which conducts capacity building programs and strategy sessions for HNI’s and corporate organizations. Yetunde has helped many professionals navigate business situations for career advancement and success when she was a lecturer at the Center for Law and Business and Chartered Institute of Personnel Management (CIPM)
She co-founded GETWORK Nigeria, an initiative hinged on improving the quality of entry level workforce in Nigeria through training and development, mentoring and recruitment to place suitable candidates in the jobs of their dreams.
Unsatisfied with the state of education in the country, Yetunde went abroad to study early childhood education and upon her return, started up her own Montessori-run school. She organizes workshops to promote quality education at all levels. Aside from all these, Yetunde Ajibade advocates for vulnerable women empowerment by organizing skill acquisition projects for women.
In this interview, Yetunde, tells Daily Sun why she thinks Montessori education is better for children and everyone mustn’t own a school in Nigeria. She talked about why she dumped the wig for the classroom and other issues
Can you walk briefly down memory lane on how all these began for you?
I have always been restless person and a talkative from my childhood. It really started in 2009. One day, my thought process just drifted to how I can make impact in people’s life. So I called my friends together and started a group called, “senoritas, so what?” and later, “young women for positive change”. I just wanted to get women together to help one another and give back to the society.
So we organized and visited the less privileged homes. From this, we realized that there are many people that need our help and that we need to do just a little to put a smile on their faces. This was where women empowerment started for me. Even though, I didn’t know what it was at the time.
From my experience therefore, I realized too, that a lot of women were suffering and helpless. It was from there I started a women empowerment program and began to seek for funding.
We started hosting and executing women empowerment programs with the aim of helping and giving them hope. The women are camped for a period and mentored. They teach them some skills that will help them achieve and improve economic sustainability. These skills include business, social and even general day to day life. That was how women empowerment started and I have seen all sorts of situations that almost broke me. From there, I moved into management consultancy services.
At what point did you transit from the wig to the classroom, so to say?
It wasn’t as if I didn’t enjoy being a lawyer. I think I just wanted more. For everything you have, the best thing you can do is to give back to someone else. I realized during my sessions with people that most of their problems were foundational and the only way to deal with it was to tackle it from the foundation.
So, I started researching. My research led me to early years formation and trying to get the best method for starting a child right. I finally settled for the Montessori education. I decided to open my own academy. I went back to school to get a degree in Montessori education. I didn’t want anyone to tell me this was how I was going to solve the problem. I saw the problem and decided to tackle it.
There is a popular notion that Montessori system is essentially for kids with disabilities. How correct or wrong is that notion?
Yes, of course, people usually claim that the Montessori method is for kids with disabilities because she started out with kids that were ‘different’ but now, people have realized that this method works ten times better, even in kids with no disability.
We have had testimonies from different parents whose kids are undergoing Montessori teaching. It embraces a hands-on method in teaching. There is respect for the child and this was one of the major attractions for me because if you expect respect from a child, you should also respect him. We have kids of different ages in the same class and the younger kids look up to the older ones whilst the older ones nurture the younger ones. It gives them a sense of responsibility from a young age as the fastest way for kids to learn from themselves. We don’t do examinations, the reward is in the work and the children are doing well. Children of Montessori education do better than children from regular school for obvious reasons.
So, why do you think that the Montessori is the best for a child?
It is particular about the environment where a child grows and develops. From birth to six years is very important in the life of every child and whatever you do, during those years sets the course on how the child’s life would most likely progress.
Children have different abilities and learn at different capacities. This is why I don’t really fancy the regular standard of education. We nurture the natural gifts of each child, support and guide them to try new activities, discover new things and solve problems themselves with provided materials.
Children learn through solving problems and this is what Montessori education helps to do. We offer freedom with some limits and the reward the child is in the process of achieving their work. If you begin to reward children for doing their work, they begin to expect rewards every time and what happens the day you don’t have any reward to give them? There is no punishment with this method because the orderly system encourages discipline. What does beating, inflicting pain on a child really do at the end of the day? The foundation, early years of our children is very important, once they are raised right, they will transition into responsible adults.
In order to achieve maximum result, is there a particular number of children that can be taught at once, in Montessori?
It should be a maximum of 15-16 children per class and not more than that because the children in each class are of different ages. You would see that they mature quicker because they have children of a year, two years looking up to them for comfort and direction.
The rate at which private schools spring up in all corners of the country is simply alarming. Has this surge impacted positively on the level of education?
I strongly believe that education is life and we cannot have too many schools. I would rather suggest collaboration for the sector. I think we shouldn’t dwell on focusing on our individual needs and successes but think of the greater good by collaborating more. Everyone doesn’t have to own a school. We should be able to partner with an existing school to start something.
I do not mean you shouldn’t start your own school but we should think of collaboration first. When I first started, everyone kept asking me what my plan for growth and expansion was but I maintained that my growth and success was in my children. If we had more educators thinking like this, there would be more impact in the sector.
Money is important, no doubt, but you need to enjoy educating the young minds. If I could do this for free, I would.
Recently, a serving governor enrolled his child in a public school. Do you see that as a mere publicity stunt or a step in the right direction?
I think it is brilliant idea. I am sure they will do right for the child and every child in that class/school will benefit from it. If we had more or all public servants doing this, imagine what public schools would look like. In developed countries, children attend public schools, which are of good standards.
People only choose private schools as a matter of choice. Parents don’t need to struggle to raise huge sums of money trying to educate their kids as it is done here because they know that if they are not educated privately, they wouldn’t get what they want. If more governors do this, there would be huge reforms in the sector.
You also run a training outfit for improving organization efficiency and human capacity development. What does this entail and what is your goal?
When your people are informed, when they build capacity and they are in the know-how and acquire knowledge, it trickles down to the organization and their performances. In our faculty, we have various subject matter experts and the goal is to impact on the organization so that we have better people, organization and society.
It stems from my passion of building people and encouraging their capacity to learn. We need to build a culture of research, discovery, creating the hunger to want to know more and so on. Some organizations know this and are constantly training and re-training their staff because they know how it would improve their bottom line. Even if your organization doesn’t send you for training, train yourself. It is an investment that no one can take away from you. We should always hunger to know more and try to solve problems.
You are widely educated, both from home and abroad. In your opinion, do you think classroom education alone is sufficient in today’s world?
No, and that is why I like the Montessori format. Education shouldn’t just be restricted to the four walls of a classroom and that is why we have problems with today’s graduates.
We are churning out graduates on daily basis and the problem is, if they don’t get employed, they don’t know what else to do. Entrepreneurship should be embedded in our curriculums. Students should be equipped with the mindset of creating employment, solving problems instead of waiting to be employed. Even if you are going to be an employee, you will have an employer mindset. Skill acquisition has to be embedded in classroom training. And children have to learn other skills in school apart from regular academic work.
You are involved in women empowerment programs. How does education better the lots of women using you as an example?
I am aware of what education means and I am also aware of Nigerian women’s sufferings. It is only when you understand and appreciate all these issues, that you can provide solutions. I always tell women that you don’t have to become a victim of your circumstance or environment, instead, let your circumstance and environment propel you to greatness. Don’t wait for anyone to come and hold your hand and tell you what to do. Go out there and find your way. The universe rewards hard work, passion and excellence.
and commitment. This is part of the importance of education. It saddens me that in some rural areas, you have to plead with some fathers to educate their female children and I am glad that women are passionately taking this up.
What is your advice for young women looking to take their place in the world?
Be available, learn to be of service. We all want to be queens but who will serve?
I see some young people saying that they cannot take this job or that employment because they feel the money is too small. It is only when you are young that you can actually work hard and good, too. If you are blessed enough to get an organization to mentor or train you in your process of becoming who you are meant to be, take it because it is invaluable.
Stoop to serve and the universe would reward you. When you put in work, the time to enjoy would come. Don’t expect to make money before you serve. Understand that you need to do the work before you can become a person of value. In Nigeria, we have a lot of people that were PA’s to their bosses and have become big names in their own right today, so my advice is, just learn to be of service always.
What is your last word for women reading this?
Women should learn to support themselves. I don’t see challenges because we decide what challenges we accept. As women, we should lift each other more, help each other more, encourage each other more and champion each other more.
Find a woman or a young girl you can support and do it passionately. All my experiences, both good and bad have shaped me into becoming who I am today. We should understand that our ability to motivate and encourage someone else, maybe the reason he/she wakes up and is happy.