Education
Social mobility tsar wants campaign against toddlers having mobile phones

Social mobility tsar wants campaign against toddlers having mobile phones
The government’s new social mobility commissioner has told MPs she wants to launch a nationwide campaign telling parents not to give their toddlers a mobile phone to play with because it will make reading harder for them later on.
Katharine Birbalsingh told MPs there was “a lack of knowledge out there” and that she would like to use her role to get information to parents across the country to help them better support their children and thus improve their social mobility.
She also played down the significance of the digital divide in learning, saying laptops were not the answer to educational disadvantage. The best way to tackle educational disparities between rich and poor children, she said, was to improve teaching in schools, ensuring good discipline and high standards for all.
Birbalsingh, the head teacher of a secondary school described as the strictest, in Britain, was giving evidence to the women and equalities committee on Wednesday at a pre-appointment scrutiny hearing before she takes up her role as chair of the Social Mobility Commission.
A critic of “woke culture” and a favourite of many Conservative ministers, Birbalsingh was quizzed about her view of the term white privilege, which she has previously said undermines black children.
She said she did not deny the existence of racism or sexism, but warned that if you keep telling children the establishment is against them, they are likely to give up. “I’ve always worked in the inner city. Many of the children in my schools have been ethnic minority kids.
“If it’s the case that you are telling them all the time, ‘You can’t get this job because you are black’, or ‘You can’t do this because you are brown’, it’s very hard for a child to be able to see above that. That does not mean we should bury our heads.”
The Institute of Race Relations criticised her appointment, saying it showed the government was ignoring the evidence on inequality and “hardwired racism” in the education system.
Birbalsingh is well known in the education sector as the head teacher of Michaela Community School, a secondary school in Wembley, north London, which has a “no excuses” behaviour policy and has been judged outstanding by Ofsted.
Asked about her plans for her new role, she said: “My initial thoughts are that I would like national campaigns on things like phones and not giving them to your toddler. I would love it if we could get to a point where [the issue is considered] in the same way that we know that you should eat four or five fruit vegetables in a day, or drink eight glasses of water a day.”
She agreed that the pandemic had been “a disaster” for disadvantaged children and she understood why the government had distributed laptops, but questioned the assumption that the more digital access you have as a family, the better off you are in terms of accessing education. “I think there’s a lot more to accessing education and I don’t think the solution is providing more laptops for families,” she said.
Education
Tinubu appoints Awuzie substantive Rector, Federal Polytechnic, Oko

President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Dr Chioma Awuzie as the substantive Rector of Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra State.
Mr Chijioke Ibezimako, Public Relations Officer of the institution confirmed the appointment to NAN in Awka on Thursday.
Awuzie is a globally recognized scholar with a rich portfolio of research and publications.
Ibezimako said the appointment of Awuzie as Rector of Federal Polytechnic Oko took effect from February 5 for a five-year term.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the appointment of Dr Chioma Awuzie as the Polytechnic Rector.
“This follows the recommendation of the Institution’s Governing Council under the chairmanship of Sen. Dr Barnabas Gemade,” he said.
Awuzie holds a Doctorate Degree in Physical and Materials Chemistry and Chief Lecturer in the Department of Science Laboratory Technology.
Until her appointment, Awuzie was the Director in charge of Tertiary Education Trust Fund, TETFund, Projects in the Polytechnic.
She has held several leadership positions in the institution, including Head of the Department of Renewable Energy Research and Development, Director of the Petroleum, Coal, and Renewable Energy Research Unit, and Director of International Higher Education Academic Organisations.
Awuzie had served as Coordinator, Technical, Vocational Education, and Training, TVET.
She was part of the National Board for Technical Education, NBTE, which drafted the Renewable Energy Technology curriculum for Nigerian Polytechnics, currently in use.
Education
NELFUND disburses N20bn to 192,906 students

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) as of Feb.3, has disbursed a total of N20,074,050,000 for institutional fees, benefiting no fewer than 192,906 students across various tertiary institutions in the country.
This is contained in a statement by Akintunde Sawyerr, Managing Director, NELFUND, and made available to newsmen in Abuja on Monday.
Mr Sawyerr also disclosed that the Fund had so far received loan applications from no fewer than 364,042 students, adding that about 169,114 students had so far benefitted from the NELFUND’s monthly stipends disbursement.
He added that N12, 818,960,000, had been disbursed in this regard, with each student receiving N20, 000.
“We appreciate the unwavering support of President Bola Tinubu in making higher education accessible to all deserving Nigerian students.
“NELFUND remains committed to transparency and efficiency in managing the student loan scheme and will continue to provide accurate updates as disbursements progress.
NAN
Education
Kano revives school feeding program after three years

The Kano State Government has revived its school feeding program across public primary schools and early childhood care centers, with an estimated budget of N2.2 billion.
The initiative, captured in the 2025 budget allocation aims to enhance the nutritional well-being of pupils, boost learning capacity, and improve school enrollment and retention through community participation.
The program, previously implemented under the National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme, was suspended in Kano three years ago due to irregularities, including poor service delivery and fund mismanagement, which hampered its success.
Additionally, the government has allocated N1.8 billion in the 2025 budget to provide meals for students in public secondary boarding schools, which were recently reopened by the current administration. These schools had been shut down by the previous government due to security concerns.
Commissioner for Planning and Budget, Musa Sulaiman Shanono, disclosed these details while briefing journalists on the sectoral allocations and breakdown of the 2025 budget.
According to Shanono, education received the largest share of the budget, with an allocation of over N205 billion—accounting for 29% of the total budget—reflecting Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf’s commitment to revitalizing the sector and improving educational outcomes.
Further allocations include N912 million for grants and contributions to overseas university students, while local students will receive N2.7 billion in scholarship allowances.
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