Education advocate and CEO of Leading Learning Ltd, Folasade Adefisayo, has shared a rare and deeply personal reflection following a New Year visit to Ibadan, where she spent time with her 94-year-old mother, Mrs. Olusolape Folasade Ifaturoti, a veteran mathematics teacher and lifelong educator.
Adefisayo, who is widely known for her public commentary on education reform and leadership, described the visit as a moment of reflection on family, legacy, and the enduring impact of teachers. Her mother, whom she described as her role model and first teacher, taught Mathematics and English across several prominent secondary schools, including Queen’s School Ede, Queen’s College Lagos, New Era Girls’ School, and Queen’s School Ibadan.
According to Adefisayo, her mother played a formative role in shaping her appreciation for numeracy and learning. Though she initially struggled with Mathematics as a student, she credits her mother with helping her see the subject as a practical tool embedded in everyday life, rather than an abstract discipline. This experience, she noted, reinforced her belief in the power of effective teaching and the importance of understanding individual learners.
Reflecting on her mother’s decades-long career, Adefisayo emphasized the transformational role teachers play in shaping minds and societies. She reiterated her long-held view that the most critical element of any education system is the interaction between teachers and students in the classroom, adding that school leaders and policymakers must prioritize and support this relationship to achieve meaningful educational outcomes.
During the visit, Adefisayo recounted an emotional moment when her mother asked to sit on her lap, an experience she described as symbolic of the natural passage of life and the responsibility of one generation to care for and empower the next. The moment, she said, reinforced the importance of succession and intentional leadership transition.
As a result, Adefisayo announced a renewed personal and professional commitment in 2026 to focus on succession planning within education. She pledged to support the next generation of school leaders through mentoring, coaching, teaching, facilitation, and role modeling, with the aim of strengthening leadership capacity across the education sector.
She concluded by thanking her community of followers for their continued engagement and support, noting that shared learning and dialogue remain central to her mission of advancing education and leadership development in Nigeria and beyond.
