Stakeholders Want TTCs Back

Some stakeholders in the education sector have called on the Federal Government to resuscitate the Teachers Training Colleges (TTCs) so as to arrest the falling standard of education.
They made the call in separate interviews with newsmen yesterday in Abuja.
They argued that contrary to views of the architects of the 6-3-3-4 system in the revised National Policy on Education, replacing the Grade II teachers had done more harm than good to the education sector.
They concurred with the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu’s recent pronouncement that Grade II teachers are better than the Nigerian Certificate of Education (NCE) holders in term of proficiency.
The minister said recently that some Grade II teachers are better than the holders of the National Certificate of Education (NCE).
He was speaking during a budget defence session with the House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education and Services.
Adamu said every Nigerian should be ashamed of the country’s falling standard of education.
Assistant Headmistress, Methodist Elementary School, Oke Omi, Osun State, Mrs Adekemi Jegede is of the opinion that the abolition of Grade II teachers’ colleges had largely contributed to the fallen standard in education.
Jegede said that Grade II teachers in the past were given professional training skills unlike what obtained in most Colleges of Education at present.
According to her, NCE teachers of today cannot be matched to the graduates of Grade two teachers, who instilled discipline and imparted knowledge to the students through the right methodology.
Also, Founder, Elshadai Kiddies Varsity, Mr. Simeon Abiina called for the reintroduction of the Grade II teachers training colleges for the purpose of addressing the deficiencies in the referred and unqualified primary school teachers.
Abiina said that the time for review of the National Policy on Education after operating the 6-3-3-4  for nearly 40 years was now, so as to put things right and  improve on the quality of teachers.
He said that undue emphasis on paper qualification has discouraged many youths from going to Colleges of Education and become teachers in the long run.
“If this is done, it will go a long way to help the country to develop its human capital resources to meet its need.’’
An educationalist, Mrs Felicia Odey, however, disagreed with the minister’s pronouncement on the quality of grade II teachers and their counterparts holding NCE.
According her, it is the education system that should be reviewed to produce the right calibre of teachers for the schools.
Odey said that the grade II colleges were abolished as a result of the change in curriculum as enshrined in the policy on education.
She advised that to get it right, the curriculum for training grade II teachers should be embedded in the NCE curriculum.
She maintained that the NCE holders are more versatile to give the right knowledge in the schools, stressing the need for thorough training and skill, be it grade II or NCE teachers.
Odey also pointed out that highly motivated teachers were most desirable to take the education sector to greater heights.