The Registrar of Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Prof Segun Ajiboye Monday, said the council has advised the National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) to stop posting graduates without education degrees to teach in schools.
Professor Ajiboye dropped this hint in Ibadan during a chat with journalists on the theme of the 2019 International Youth Day “Transforming Education”
According to the TRCN Registrar, the Council has written to the NYSC Director General to stop posting graduates without education degrees to teach in schools.
“We have written a letter to the NYSC Director-general that only those who read Education should be posted to schools during their service year. This will ensure that only round pegs are deployed to round holes. Why are Doctors not posted to teach? Why are Education graduates not deployed to hospitals to operate the sick? If you cannot allow a teacher to treat you in the hospital why should you allow a fake teacher to teach your children and destroy their future,” he said.
Professor Ajiboye lamented that it was unfortunate that most of the Corp members posted to teach during the mandatory one year NYSC scheme do not have qualification to teach adding that with such, education system get bastardized when unqualified persons without requisite professional skills are deployed to teach.
The TRCN Registrar and Executive Director noted that there are challenges of having qualified teachers in some states of the federation and that majority of those teaching in private nursery and primary schools nationwide do not have the qualification to teach.
He pointed out that those qualified must still be registered and professionally certified and licensed by the Council, adding that ,”only qualified and well trained and re-trained teachers can bring about a transformed education that the Nigerian youth can benefit from.
“We should not debase teaching profession. State governors must also ensure that they train and re-train those in their schools. Human capital development must be taken seriously to transform our education system”
