Ibadan – The Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria, TRCN, has stressed the importance of having only qualified teachers in classrooms across the country noting that good teachers are the most crucial resources in the education sector.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Ametrocopy in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, the Chairman of the Council, Professor Segun Ajiboye, lamented the current status of teachers in Nigeria as according to him ”teachers are not enjoying the best status in our country.”
“Yes, we need infrastructural development in our schools, we need classrooms but what we need most is quality teachers,” he added.
The University Don said about 150 researches have shown that the most critical element in terms of quality education is the teacher adding that “if you want to improve on the quality of education, you must improve on the quality of the teachers.”
He said the council is committed to making sure that the Nigerian teacher is able to provide 21st-century education and ensuring that the Nigerian child has access to quality teaching.
The Chairman lamented the situation where intelligent and bright minds shy away from teaching jobs which has now left it in the hands of the unqualified ones.
This he said is what the TRCN has set out to address.
“We focus on two things, one, how to attract the best brains into teaching, two, how to retain the experienced teachers on the job.”
Prof. Ajiboye disclosed that the activities of TRCN extend to both public and private schools.
“We are also concerned as Nigerians and as parents, and we have asked parents to check the TRCN website, we have what we call the Teachers’ information system, where you can check and confirm if the teachers teaching your children are qualified to be in the classrooms.”
According to him, the 2019 deadline for teachers’ registration stands but monitoring has been hampered by the outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus.
He however added that the council will get the National Council on Education to give a final deadline on the registration of teachers.
Professor Ajiboye expressed optimism on the future of education in Nigeria adding that the welfare of teachers is paramount on the mind of the present administration.
