PGDE falls short of university teaching requirement

The National Universities Commission (NUC) has said the acquisition of a Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) by lecturers is not a requirement for the attainment of teaching excellence in the university system.

NUC Executive Secretary Professor Abubakar Rasheed stated this in Abuja during a workshop on teaching skills for lecturers organised in collaboration with Nile University and University of Sussex, UK.

He said whereas educational skill and competence were necessary, a systematic approach to academic training on the basis of regular professional development should be pursued.

Represented by the Director of Research, Innovation and Information Technology, Dr Suleiman Ramon-Yusuf, he said the commission has embarked on a massive reform of the various curriculums being used in universities to improve the quality of education in the country.

“The curriculum reforms are also driven by the commission’s awareness of the complexity of the skills’ set that will be required of graduates of our universities some of whom may be expected to function at jobs that may not be in existence today,” Rasheed said.

Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Sunny Echono, pledged government’s support to any initiative aimed at improving the quality of the education sector, adding that the workshop was in line with the present administration’s quest to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).