DFID to train 66, 816 teachers

The Department for International Development (DFID), has inaugurated the Teacher Development Programme (TDP), to boost learning in six northern states of the federation.

The programme will witness the training of 62, 000 school teachers, 4, 000 student teachers and 816 teacher educators in the six states.

The benefitting states in the TDP, which aim is to improve the quality of teaching and learning at the basic education level are Jigawa, Katsina, Zamfara, Niger, Kaduna and Kano states.

Funded by the DFID, the programme is also aimed at improving teachers’ skills in the core subjects of English, mathematics science and technology.

The Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Education, Dr. MacJohn Nwaobiala, represented by the National Programme Manager, TDP, Dr. Nguyan Feese, at the meeting of the National Joint Committee for the TDP in Abuja, expressed optimism that the recommendations of the working groups would be used to refine the reforms articulated by the National Commission for Colleges of Education.

He lamented that the provision of sustainable continuing professional development opportunities for teachers started to receive better attention only recently.

“A key element of the reform of pre-service training is how to ensure that teacher educators in our institutions have regular opportunities to update their subject content knowledge and pedagogical skills,” he stated.

The NCCE Executive Secretary, Prof. Muhammed Ibn Junaid, said the commission was committed to ensuring the production of quality teachers for the nation’s education sector.

According to him, the NCCE will continue to work with the colleges and TDP to accomplish the necessary reforms in the sector.

Junaid said, “Our aim in implementing the CPD programme is to engender a paradigm shift in the way lecturers teach, from traditional transmission model of teaching to constructivist gender sensitive pedagogy.

“While we continue to receive support from the TDP to implement our reforms in the colleges in the states, in the second phase, we shall have intense engagements with all proprietors of the colleges of education, TETFUND and other development partners in order to source sufficient funds for nationwide implementation, including the relocation of the materials and models developed with support from the TDP.”