Clement Adeyi, Osogbo
In its bid to equip its students with requisite skills, knowledge and competencies as well as prepare them as future leaders, the Nigerian Navy recently organised the 2019 Chief of Naval Staff Annual Inter-School Debate and Quiz Competition for Nigerian Navy Secondary Schools across the three Nigerian Navy operations commands.
The schools include the Western Naval Command represented by the Nigeria Navy Secondary School ( NNSS), Abeokuta and Ogbomoso; the Eastern Naval Command represented by NNSS Port Harcourt and Calabar as well as NNSS Okura, Kogi State, which represented the Central Naval Command.
The first phase of the competition commenced on March 5 at the command level after which the three commands selected the best schools to represent them in the grand finale, hosted by the Nigerian Navy Secondary School, Iresa-Apa, Ogbomosho, Oyo State.
In the debate, NNSS Okura clinched the first position, while NNSS Abeokuta and NNSS Ogbomosho took seconnd and third positions respectively. NNSS Port Harcourt came fourth while NNSS placed fifth position.
In the quiz competition, NNSS Calabar came first, while NNSS Port Harcourt and NNSS Ogbomosho clinched the second and third positions respectively just as NNSS Abeokuta took fourth and NNSS placed fifth.
Students that clinched first, second and third positions were rewarded with gift items such as table lamp, plastic folders, packs of plastic hangers, bedside mat, Navy branded T- shirts among others.
Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Ibok Ete Ibas, who was represented by the Director of Education, Commodore Isa Ahmed,
said the competitions were organised to enable students learn and master the rudiments and techniques that would enhance the three domains of learning which are the cognitive, affective and the psychomotor domains.
Ibas added that the competition would also go a long way in boosting the students’ confidence, enhance social interaction among them and above all improve their academic competencies.
The CNS also disclosed that the competition was designed to provide a platform on which Nigerian Navy Secondary Schools would test their academic might and debate topical issues affecting the youth as well as national development.
He enthused that the topics for both debate and quiz were carefully chosen to provoke critical and analytical thinking among the contestants with a view to improving the quality of education in the Nigerian Navy welfare schools.
He assured that some of the submissions made during the competition would be deliberated upon by naval authority and would be considered in the formation of policies that pertain to education and youth development.
The Director of Naval Education, Isa Ahmed, also stressed that the competition was designed to promote learning among the students.
Ahmed added that the debate topics were selected to test the contestants’ analytical thinking and avail them the opportunity to display their public speaking skills.
The Commandant of the host school, NNSS, Ogbomosho, Remilekun Adetayo urged the winners to keep up their winning streaks. She said the biggest room in life was the room for improvement and called on the losers to work harder to be able to excel in subsequent editions of the exercise.