Working Lives

Working Lives: The Ikorodu Woman Who Does Not Want to Retire from Teaching

Working Lives: The Ikorodu Woman Who Does Not Want to Retire from Teaching

“Everything about my job makes me happy. I would not have trained to become a teacher if I was not passionate about it. People tend to respect and treat you well the moment they know you are a teacher. Teaching comes with dignity. I would not trade teaching for anything. In fact, I wish I will not retire someday”.

What is your name?

My name is Khadijat Omotosho. 

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Ikorodu. I am from Imota Local Government Area of Ikorodu in Lagos State. I had my primary and secondary education at Ikorodu.

Tell me about your family?

My father was a driver. He worked with Lucky Fibre Industries before his retirement in 2015.  He started fish farming shortly after his retirement. He runs the business till date. My mum owns a food canteen at Ikorodu. I am the first of five children – four girls and a boy. I am the only teacher in my family. My siblings are into businesses. 

Are you married?

Yes. I am married with two kids. My husband is a teacher as well. We met at Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education. He was a year ahead of me. He teaches in a secondary school while I teach in a primary school.

Tell me about your education and how you transitioned to a teaching career?

I had my primary and secondary education at Methodist Primary School and Ikorodu High School respectively. I got a teaching job in a nursery school shortly after I graduated from secondary school. I taught Nursery 2. The Proprietress was really friendly, she made teaching easy and enjoyable for me. I fell in love with teaching through her mentorship. I was earning N10,000 at that time. Seeing how passionate I had become about teaching, the Proprietress advised me to go for higher studies in Education. She volunteered to talk to my father to support my education to train as a teacher. My parents wanted me to study Economics at the university. However, I chose to become a teacher. I got admitted into Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education to study Social Studies. I think I was destined to become a teacher. While I was in secondary school, my teachers would give me their lesson notes to write on the blackboard for my classmates. I was always excited each time that happened. Being a teacher is one of the best decisions I have ever made.

Also Read: Working Lives: The Teacher Who is Tired of Jumping Molue Buses

How did you get your first official teaching job?

I got my first official teaching job in 2003. I never had to wait for a long time to get a job after I graduated from Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education. I had contacts of my teachers whom I assisted with writing their lesson notes on the blackboard. Some of the teachers had become Senior teachers, Principals and Vice Principals of different schools. A couple of them had retired. I got in touch with them to inform them that I had graduated and needed a teaching job. I was introduced to a Headmaster through one of my secondary school teachers. But the school was in need of a Yoruba teacher at that time. I accepted to teach Yoruba with the hope of teaching Social Studies after a while. I went back to my closet and I started training myself how to read Yoruba fluently. I read a couple of books and I watched a lot of Yoruba movies. Along the line, I got another offer in another primary school to teach Social Studies. I taught Yoruba for five years.

What was your salary and what do you earn now?

The salary was good at that time. Salaries and other bonuses were paid as and when due. Teachers never had issues with salaries not getting paid on time. I cannot give you specific figures but I can tell you that what I earn now is fair enough. It is not enough though but I am surviving with it. The cost of living in Nigeria is very high. I spend N2,000 daily i.e., for transportation to where I work and feeding.  

What other things do you do that fetches an income? How much do you get from the activity?

I am a business woman. I sell female and children’s clothing and I also have three POS shops in Ikorodu. The POS business is jointly owned by my husband and I. I make enough money from my businesses.

What are the main things you spend on?

I spend on getting goods for my businesses, transportation and feeding. I also take care of my parents. My husband pays the children’s tuition fees, accommodation and handles other projects in the family. 

How have you been juggling teaching and other businesses?

As a civil servant, we do not work from 9am to 5pm. I close from school at 2pm. I go to my POS shops after I close from school. I have sales girls who work at my shops. They resume in the morning and I join them in the afternoon. I do not visit the three shops everyday but I get sales reports from them daily. My colleagues buy clothes from me. They are my number one customer.  

Is the PTA in your school active? 

Yes. We hold PTA meetings once every two months. The chairperson of our PTA is one of the parents. PTA is very important. It is the only avenue for us to interact with parents and vice versa. 

What part of your job makes you happy?

Everything about my job makes me happy. I would not have trained to become a teacher if I was not passionate about it. People tend to respect and treat you well the moment they know you are a teacher. Teaching comes with dignity. If I was not happy with teaching, you would see the negative impact on my students. I would not trade teaching for anything. In fact, I wish I will not retire someday. 

Also Read: Working Lives: The Primary School Teacher Who Has Not Been Promoted in 12 Years

Why do you think even average Nigerians e.g., taxi drivers, do not send their children to public schools? 

Everybody wants the best for their children. Some people believe that they can only get the best quality in private schools. If you take a census of students in public schools presently, you will observe that the population of students in public schools have reduced drastically. A lot of parents will stop at nothing to ensure that their children attend private schools. You would even see parents who are struggling to feed enrolling their children in private schools. Some will say they cannot stand the shame from their friends whose children attend private schools. So, they would rather starve and save up money for tuition fees. I tell any parent who cares to listen that public school teachers are no longer the type who would gist all day or send students on personal errands. We have a monitoring team in public schools now. The team visits public schools often to evaluate the teaching standard of teachers and performances of students. Any teacher who is found wanting in their duties would lose their job.

Can you describe some of the students whose success really made you happy?

No student has ever failed in my class. I teach kids. Being with them and watching them grow gives me joy daily. 

How can the government make teaching more rewarding?

The government should always organize seminars for teachers. This will create an avenue for us to air our challenges and opinions. The seminar should be a platform to learn new ideas, teaching methods etc. The government should look into increasing teachers’ salaries as well. 

Obande Friday

Friday is a Mass Communication graduate of The Polytechnic of Ibadan. He has four years of content development experience. He loves lifting weights in his spare time.

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