Experts brainstorm on repositioning colleges of education in Nigeria

RECENTLY, experts and critical stakeholders at a gathering in Abuja reached an agreement on the need to urgently reposition teacher education as a way to improve the quality of teaching and learning in schools while at the same time restore the lost glory of teaching profession in the country.

The three-day stakeholders’ summit on repositioning Colleges of Education System Towards Improved Efficiency and Effectiveness, was organised by the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COASU), in collaboration with the National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) and the Committee of Provosts of Colleges of Education.

Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, speaking at the event, expressed the resolve of the Federal Government to revamp teacher education in the country and tasked other stakeholders to join hands with the government in that direction.

The summit attracted high concentration of provosts of colleges of education in Nigeria, and was attended by the Registrar and Chief Executive of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Professor Ishaq Oloyede, the Executive Secretary of NCCE, Professor Bappa-Aliyu Mohammadu.

Also at the event were other past executive secretaries of the commission, including Professor Junaid Mohammed, Professor Monday Joshua, among an array of scholars who made presentations on different topics.

Adamu, who declared the summit open, admitted that teacher education in Nigeria is faced with numerous challenges, expressing delight that the historic torch-bearing moment that has created a meeting of erudite academics of great repute to reflect on, discuss and review issues pertaining to status of the COEs, contemporary challenges, possible innovations, dynamics and progress, with a view to repositioning teacher education within the context of the colleges of education system.

He said since the inception of Colleges of Education (COEs) in Nigeria with the establishment of the foremost institutions in the early 1960s, the system has grown overtime with the establishment of over 158 functional colleges of education by the federal, state and private proprietors, so as to increase access and subscription.

Director, Tertiary Education, Rakyat Gambo Ilyasu, read the minister’s speech, expressing optimism that the outcomes of deliberations during the auspicious summit would hopefully proffer solutions to the numerous challenges confronting the sector.

While reiterating the commitment of the Federal Government to revamp teaching profession in Nigeria, Adamu said the current administration has initiated several policies in favour of the sector and granted recognition of the contributions of students and teachers in the education sector.

He recalled that President Muhammadu Buhari’s speech in his 2020 World Teachers’ Day (WTD), approved the following incentives for teachers: approval of 65years retirement age; increase in the years of service from 35 to 40; award of a special salary scale and provision of rural posting; and science teachers and peculiar allowances for teachers, among others.

President of Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU), NuhuOgirima, in his remark, said he was convinced that the union’s role in the system must go beyond the agitation for the redemption of material and financial entitlements, to equally include its collaborative efforts as critical stakeholders in evolving best practices and strategies for repositioning the sub-sector.

YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

We Have Not Had Water Supply In Months ― Abeokuta Residents

In spite of the huge investment in the water sector by the government and international organisations, water scarcity has grown to become a perennial nightmare for residents of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. This report x-rays the lives and experiences of residents in getting clean, potable and affordable water amidst the surge of COVID-19 cases in the state.