Teachers’ plight and education advancement

As the world marked Teachers’ Day last week, the pathetic situation of teachers in the country was again brought to the fore. The Nigerian teacher has continued to remain the underdog of the society with attendant problems affecting the noble profession. Just a few days ago, I watched a programme on BATV (Bauchi State Television) featuring the launch and presentation of some books for primary school pupils to the Bauchi State governor by the State Universal Basic Education Board in collaboration with the Northern Education Initiative plus (NEI+). According to the organizers, the programme funded and supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is targeting two states in the north namely; Bauchi and Sokoto and it is aimed at promoting reading and writing among primary school pupils in the two states. Already, a 10 day workshop for English and Hausa languages teachers is on-going in the state where teachers are expected to acquire new and effective teaching methods for the benefit of their pupils.

While this effort could be said to be a welcome development, considering the falling standard of education in the country, it’s also pertinent to state here that initiatives such as this one only deal with an aspect of the problem leaving behind perhaps, the most vital component as far as education is concerned. Countless of similar workshops that gulped a lot of money were held in the past, yet nothing remarkable has been achieved in the sector. The pupils and students are no better than before, and teachers still wallow in despair and selfpity. This means something is amiss in the planning and execution of such initiatives. The truth is that for a robust education sector, the welfare of teachers must come first. You cannot install the latest gadgets and accessories in your car whereas the driver is left un-catered for, with no motivation, no job satisfaction and worst of all, even his monthly stipend does not come as at when due. You can only imagine what would become of that driver and his passengers, assuming he is a commercial driver. Such is the situation of primary school teachers in most states in the country.

Even as those teachers attend the 10-day workshop, their minds will be preoccupied with thoughts of when they would receive their three months’ salaries. And before they get paid, they have to undergo countless verification exercises. Issues such as delay in promotion, payment of leave grant and welfare generally are some of the factors hindering education advancement in most states. Until these bottlenecks are done away with in the system, I am afraid no significant headway can be made. It would be recalled that under the past government of Bauchi State, N2 billion worth of textbooks were procured and distributed to pupils and students of public schools. Schools were built and some rehabilitated but I am not sure what package teachers enjoyed in the entire arrangement that could boost their morale and reawaken their desire to impart knowledge. A simple check in most states in the country will reveal to you the hardship teachers are subjected to. Efforts must be made to change the situation if indeed we seek advancement in the education sector.

I implore the major stakeholders to, as a matter of urgency, address the plight of teachers in the country for the overall benefit of our children and education advancement in our country.