While over 83 percent of teachers in public schools in the country are qualified, over 70 percent of teachers in private schools are not qualified.
Registrar, Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Professor Olusegun Ajiboye made this disclosure at the first public lecture of the Faculty of Education, Lead City University, Ibadan, held at the institution’s International Conference Centre, on Wednesday.
Speaking, Ajiboye categorized those qualified teachers as those who studied education related courses and those unqualified as those who had no studies in the areas of education.
While describing the over 70 per cent unqualified teachers in private schools in the South-West as alarming, Ajiboye said the statistics was even more alarming in other geopolitical zones.
He said it was incumbent on parents to check the quality of those teaching their children.
Ajiboye said: “Over 83 percent of teachers in public schools in Nigeria actual qualify but over 70 percent of teachers in private schools in the South West are not registrable, they are not qualified at all, that means they have not read anything in the area of education and it is alarming.
“That is why if parents are paying for the education of their children, they should be able to check the quality of those teaching their children. It is very important.”
Speaking further, Ajiboye said while History as a subject was being returned to the curriculum, the problem schools now face is lack of those to teach History.
He said the TRCN was collaborating with the Historical Society of Nigeria towards successful implementation of the teaching of History in schools but the bane was a dearth of History teachers.
Delivering the lecture themed: “Reengineering Teacher Preparation to Catch up with Industry 4.0,” Ajiboye said today’s teachers must be up to speed with new technologies for them to be relevant.
He decried a situation where today’s teachers lack digital literacy calling on them to possess analytical skills, be critical thinkers, innovative, flexible and embrace open learning platforms.
He stressed the need for continuous training of teachers to meet the ever-changing demands of the world and understand that the future of education will be personalised learning, student ownership of learning, field experience, free choice, diverse time and space, field experience.
Ajiboye added: “The teacher has to be on top of technology. The children are being prepared to be global children so the teachers should be global too; they should leverage on technology in teaching. The rest of the world is not waiting for us so we need to revolutionise to reflect 21st century realities. It is urgent.”
In his remarks, Vice Chancellor, Lead City University, Ibadan, Professor Kabiru Adeyemo stressed the need for teachers to be equipped with the necessary knowledge, skills, and pedagogical approaches to meet the demands of the new industrial revolution.
He said teachers must become catalysts of change, facilitate innovative teaching methods and nurture the next generation of learners to become adaptable, critical thinkers.
Adeyemo emphasised that the lecture was part of the university’s effort to revolutionize teacher education, ensure that its graduates are well-prepared to navigate the challenges and leverage the opportunities presented by the technological revolution.
On his part, Dean, Faculty of Education, Professor Donald Odeleye said teacher training institutions must constantly update their renderings for relevance and functionality.
He added that the quality of teachers in institutions is directly proportional to the versatility of the graduates churned out hence the need for teachers to truly be life moulders and transformational agents.
