Education

Support for Universal Basic Education through Teacher’s Training

 Upgrading Teachers’ Quality

The World Bank’s Education Global Group notes in their 2018 background paper to the  World Development Report that many teachers in public schools in Sub-Saharan Africa lack the requisite skills to deliver quality learning. Findings from Nigeria Education Data Survey (NEDS) of March 2015 indicate that out of the 542,533 teachers in public primary schools, only 466,465 hold a National Certificate of Education (NCE) – the minimum teaching qualification.  As a result, almost a quarter of primary school teachers cannot subtract double-digit numbers, and a third of the teachers cannot multiply double-digit numbers. Similarly, in secondary schools, only 464,216 out of the 584,160 teachers in both public and private institutions are qualified.

In addition, Nigeria Education Data Survey (NEDS) reveals that many teachers in public schools do not possess subject content knowledge to teach basic language and mathematics. And even when they have adequate content knowledge, they lack instructional/ teaching materials as well as adequate pedagogical skills to better transmit knowledge to students.

There is a growing realization that a good learning environment, availability of instructional materials, and learning aids must all be weaved with skilled and dedicated teachers in order to improve learning outcomes, especially in public schools. Hence, the TY Danjuma Foundation is committed to supporting initiatives aimed at “Upgrading Teachers’ Quality” in Nigerian public schools, with a focus on basic education.

The key objectives of the Foundation’s “Upgrading Teachers’ Quality” initiative include:

• To reduce the number of teachers without the requisite skills and knowledge of basic contents to deliver quality learning in public schools in target states.
• To reduce the lack of instructional materials for teaching in target states.
• To improve the pedagogical skills of teachers to better transmit knowledge to pupils and students in targeted states.