TRCN renews onslaught against quackery in teaching profession

THE Registrar of Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Professor Josiah Ajiboye, has vowed that the council will soon go against quacks and unqualified persons that have taken over the teaching profession in Nigeria.

Ajiboye spoke in Karu, Nasarawa State, at a one-day workshop on the ‘Gains of Certification in Nigeria’s Teaching Profession,’ organised by the council for members of Education Correspondents of Nigeria (ECAN), where he vowed to rid the country of quacks causing havoc to the education sector.

He appealed to all stakeholders, including the media, to support the council in the efforts to end quackery in the teaching profession in Nigeria.

He lamented that politicians were the major culprits responsible for recruiting unqualified teachers to teach in schools in their states, stressing that there was no way the country could make progress without the engagement of quality teachers to teach in schools across the country.

He said that no nation could grow without the provision of quality education being offered by quality teachers, hence the need to focus on education quality in the country.

According to him, teachers hold the key to development as they produce all other professionals, and quality education is driven by quality teachers.

Ajiboye explained that the National Certificate in Education (NCE) remained the minimum requirement for teaching in Nigeria, but must be certified by the TRCN.

“In countries like Finland, the qualification for teaching is a Master’s degree and they select their teachers from the secondary school.

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“They select the best of the best; that is the stringent process required to get into teaching over there.

“We also must be interested in the quality of teachers as a nation.

“We should not allow politicians to bring unqualified persons into teaching. This is not right; the country cannot progress this way,” he said.

Ajiboye commended Buhari’s administration for ensuring that the teaching profession is given a priority attention, especially the recent approval of welfare packages for teachers.

He said the council had also increased the training of teachers in 24 states across the country from 30,000 to 45,000 to provide 21st century education and ensure professionalism in the sector.

“The minister had approved 45,000 teachers to be trained across 24 states. It was initially 30,000. We had done the first leg of the training of 7,500 teachers.

“We must join forces to rescue this nation from quackery to deliver the 21st century education in the country,” he added.

Chairman of Education Correspondent Association of Nigeria (ECAN), Mr Chuks Ukwuatu, in his remarks, commended the council for promoting excellence in the sector through effective registration and licensing of teachers.

Ukwuatu said that the efforts of TRCN had helped in the promotion of professionalism and restoration of sanity in the system.