‘Govt Should Use Incentives To Attract People To Teacher-Education’

Our correspondent, ROWENA CHUKUKA, graced the last matriculation ceremony of the Federal College of Education (Technical) (FCE) Akoka,  and spoke with the provost, Dr Wahed Ademola Azeez; below are the highlights

Thank you Sir for obliging us for this interview. We would like you to give us a background of what today’s ceremony is about?

Matriculation is a ceremony that is done all over the world and away to formally  presented and declared bonafide students of the institution.

Firstly, it is only at matriculating ceremonies that students offered provisional admission are presented and declared bonafide students of the institution.

Secondly, matriculation is where  bonafide students takes matriculation Oath and sign the authority, rules and regulations.

Third, it is a ceremony at which fresh students are fully integrated into academic community.

Forth,  the ceremony is the climax of series of activities designed to introduce fresh students to the college system and ensure that they derive the greatest benefits from the resources available in the institution.

Finally, it is a way to tell the fresh students the dos and don’ts in the institution.

It is a ceremony at which fresh students are fully integrated into academic community.

All our Academic staff are well trained and qualified. The college has remained focused and committed to the philosophy and values upon which it was established in 1967; to produce qualitative science, Technical, Business and vocational education graduates who in turn, are expected to impart the knowledge to others to utilise their acquired skills in relevant areas to make meaningful impact on the development needs of our dear nation, Nigeria.

 Matriculation is a ceremony that is done all over the world and provides a forum to let the new students know the dos and the don’ts of the institution.

Now that they are matriculating, how would you expcet them to behave afterwards?

As the head of the school, of course, I would expect the students to behave well, to take their academics seriously. You know the school offers academic, technical and vocational studies, so that when they leave school, they do not need to start looking for paid jobs. So,we also use the opportunity to let them know all of that.

It appears that the enrolment figure is on the low side, compared to what it used to be; why is it like that?

It is an irony because if you look at the name of the college, it is technical but generally,  I think sometimes, it is caused by the level of awareness that people have.

We have about four higher institutions around this place  but  we keep improving on creating publicity and awareness so that the parents themselves will know the importance of technical and vocational education.

The federal government recently announced some incentives for  undergraduate students,

 Do you think this will rob off positively on the education sector?

It is the best that can happen to education the system if fully implemented. All over the world, teachers are given priority; the best incentives are attached to teachers’ education, and this helps to attract the best brains, as you can see in countries like Finland and the United Kingdom, even China.

There, teachers are referenced like medical doctors, and because of this, the best go into teacher education. So, incentives will improve the enrollment of students into higher education. How long and how far that can go with this,  will also make more students to come for enrollment. As it is, we still have shortage of teachers in Nigeria.

 So, incentives  like that will attract the best brains to education especially to teachers education.

There is this notion that the National Certificate of Education (NCE) programme is no longer attractive to many people despite the fact that the country needs teachers?

It depends on the angle you are looking at it. There’s no country where everybody is a graduate;

It’s not possible.

The education curriculum was designed for graduates of NCE to  teach in primary and Junior secondary schools, and the Nigeria education system allows the NCE candidate to also proceed higher.

So, for those who want to be fully groomed in the pedagogy of education, coming for an NCE programme gives them more advantage over those that went to university straight to study education.

Also, by the they finish their programme,  some of them that would want to further their education would see that those of them that did NCE would be better than those that went straight through JAMB. They would also look more mature than those who came through JAMB to read education.

The only difference is the numbers of years they would have spent and we are also pushing, that instead of 6 years, that it should be 5years; 3years for NCE and 2years for degree which would be an advantage.

You rightly observed that we face the challenge of the shortage of teachers; what can be done to attract our young ones into teacher education?

 Just Like what we are clamouring for,  by making college of education attractive. There must be  incentive that will attract students into teacher education. The federal government should give bursary to all students who are studying education.  By that, the students will not be looking for money for feeding, at least.

Aside government, is there anything that can be done for NCE teachers to have more respect in the society?

 On the issue of disrespect for NCE teachers, the problem Nigeria has is that we don’t  value what we have.

The curriculum Of NCE education is as rich as that of a First Degree, if not richer; go and check. At NCE, they do more courses, unlike the ones that enroll to study Education as a Degree programme; may be, it is because it is three years.

 I think it’s a problem of public perception, but not the problem of the contents of the syllabus.

 if you place an NCE candidate who has done 3years, and  later extra 2 years side by side with a candidate that went in for 4years in education, there is always a difference of maturity; even in the understanding of the contents of the curriculum or the syllabus.

I think the  respect or lack of it, is not the  problem of the contents; it the  problem of individuals.

That some one prefers a university graduate to teach in the primary or secondary school does not mean that they are better than NCE graduates.

We know that accommodation could be an issue here, can you please Sir, tell us more about it?

 We are still on it’ You can see that there is a lot of infrastructural development going on in the college.

Provision of accommodation is one of the priorities of the college. So we have meet the Federal Government, and the Tertiary Education Technology (TET) Fund has come into building hostel  accommodation for all  our public colleges,  polytechnics, and universities.  They are working seriously, also, renovating the old buildings to improve the facilities in the hostels.

Would it mean that every student would be offered accommodation?

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No, No. There is no university that can provide accommodation for all the students; It’s those that come  first; first come first served.

You have an affiliation with the University of Benin (UNIBEN), how is your relationship?

It is Cordial, very very cordial.