FG to engage 1st class, 2nd class upper graduates as teachers

The Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Education, Sonny Echono said teachers without requisite qualifications, competencies and practicing license are presently migrated out of the Nigerian Teaching Service.

“By 2021, we will not engage teachers if they don’t meet particular threshold, we are now limiting entry point of teaching only to the best who are qualified, we will engage individuals with second class upper and first class divisions,” he said

Echono disclosed this on Saturday in Abuja while monitoring the conduct of the 2020 October Diet Batch B Teachers’ Professional Qualifying Examinations, (PQE).

He said: “We will make arrangements for conversion programmes for people who have these categories of results from other fields, they need to learn pedagogy, methodology, through the NTI and the TRCN, and they will undergo specific programmes that will empower them to teach.”

The Permanent Secretary maintained that the entry level will be higher and they will get better remuneration with peculiar allowances, adding that concerned Education agencies are finalising figures with National Income Salaries and Wages.

The Federal government, according to him,  is more interested in learning outcomes and that a National Implementation Committee on teachers’ revitalization/resuscitation plan will be inaugurated before the end of November 2020.

“We must enforce Mr. President’s directive that only qualified teachers will be allowed into our classrooms. The Professional Qualifying Examinations is going on smoothly across 34 states and the feedback has been good,” he said.

Meanwhile, a total of 17, 602 teachers from across 34 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, participated in the exam as against over 46,000 candidates that sat for the March 2020 PQE, due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

On his part, the Registrar of TRCN, Prof Josiah Ajiboye said the council has created a smooth atmosphere for teachers including those in Diaspora for the exams, saying that the drop in figure was due to the effect of COVID-19 that distorted activities globally.