Follow Us on Google
From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) has asked the National Assembly to amend its establishment Act to enable it carry out stronger regulations.
Registrar of TRCN, Prof Josiah Ajiboye, stated this in Abuja while speaking as guest lecturer at the 24th annual seminar of the Nigerian Academy of Education with the theme: “Professionalisation of Teaching in Nigeria, Past, Present and Future.”
Ajiboye said although TRCN conducts registration of teachers, it performs other regulatory functions in terms of ensuring quality, monitoring and accreditation of programmes as well as providing training programmes for teachers.
He said: “Part of things we are looking forward to in the future is a change in the name of Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria to the Teacher Regulatory Council of Nigeria; it’s same TRCN. Actually, the idea behind that is that when you hear teachers’ registration council, people normally think that the function of TRCN is limited to registration of teachers. And we say no.
“Although, we register the teachers, we perform other regulatory functions in terms of ensuring quality, monitoring and accreditation of programmes and things like that. And then training programmes for teachers.
“So, we do more of regulation than just registration of teachers. We are not limited to registering teachers only. It’s Teachers’ Regulatory Council that would actually capture the essence of what we do at the level of TRCN. And that is why we are making that proposal to the House of Representatives Committee on Basic Education.”
Prof. Ajiboye confirmed that the House Committee on Basic Education has made progress with the amendment of the Act. “They have organised a public hearing on it and the Council is looking forward to seeing the amendment through,” he said.
President of the Nigerian Academy of Education, Prof. Kabiru Isyaku, said if Nigeria wants to catch up with the rest of the world, it has to develop its teaching profession as that is where human capital development begins.
Isyaku emphasised the need for quality teachers as well as ensuring dedication and welfare of teachers, adding that if the country wants quality in everything education, it has to pay for it.
