The special school for
handicapped children in Port Harcourt has called on the Rivers State Government for support to enable it have a West African Examination Council centre of its own.
Making the appeal recently at her office, the vice principal of the senior secondary school, Mr Eli Victor said the appeal was necessitated by the fact that students of the school were performing below expectation.
The reason for this, he explained, is that, this school lacks relevant equipment that would enhance teaching of students with special needs”.
Such equipment, he said include laboratories, reading and teaching aids for all subjects, as well as qualified specialist teachers. The school also lacks hostel, classrooms, library and offices.
He explained that  “the school has only 12 teachers, which is not enough to take care of all the required subjects that the students are expected to write in the West African School Certificate Exam (WASC).
The vice principal noted that all of the things stated above constituted the criteria for the school to be a centre of its own in the examination.
Our correspondent who visited the school reports thatit wore a look of abandonment.
In the department for the blind, for instance, there was just one perking brailler art a typewriter for all the students.
In the junior secondary school, though the universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), through the state Universal Basic Education Board (UBEB) supplies teaching aids, there is no space for such equipment, hence they are kept in the principal office.
Mr. Eli, appealed to the state government to equip the school to enable it meet the criteria to be made a centre for external examinations.
Among other benefits, it will reduce the stress our students face in going to write their WASC exam in other schools”, Eli concluded.