A PhD student who was unable to properly write their own name has sparked concern over Nigeria’s education system.
Professor Garba Maitafsir and Adamu Makadi spoke during a One-Day Workshop on Teachers Issues In Conflict and Protracted Crisis Settings: Documenting the Effectiveness of the Kaduna Teacher Reforms.
Professor Garba Maitafsir, Director General of the National Teachers Institute (NTI), shared the story, stating that he came across a PhD student who couldn’t write their own name. He emphasizing that the issue does not lie with the education system itself, but with the quality of teachers.
According to Adamu Makadi, Chairman of Teachers Service Board (TSB) in Kaduna State, teachers earn about 27% higher than their peers in other sectors of the state government civil service. This highlights the value placed on educators in Nigeria.
He said,“There is nothing wrong with our system of education, the problem is the quality of teachers, so Kaduna State Government took the bull by the horns by initiating a reform in the educational sector, particularly in the areas of recruitment, deployment and retention of teachers.”
“The recruitment exercise has been digitalised and adverts are open to all able and qualified candidates to apply, which has been working for us perfectly. The reform has enabled us to recruit and deploy based on their qualifications and competencies to see where they can best fit in. We also deploy teachers based on proximity to their places of residence.”
“The State Government under Senator Uba Sani has done a lot towards ensuring that competent and qualified teachers are retained in Kaduna State through provision of incentives including special allowances over other civil servants. For instance, if you are a teacher on a particular salary grade level and step, compared to your colleague who is not a teacher but in the same grade level and step, you will discover that teachers earn about 27% higher than other civil servants.”
Professor Oladele Akogun,a University don and Regional Research Director of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), Nigeria & South Sudan, suggests treating teachers should be given the same respect and care as medical doctors to improve the education system. He emphasizes the importance of reviewing education policies to ensure they align with practices.
