Lagos decries dearth of qualified teachers | EduCeleb
EduCeleb
19th February 2021
Lagos State government has decried the lack of qualified teachers in schools, saying graduates no longer function as required because the knowledge they possessed was not in line with current realities.
Its Commissioner for Education, Folashade Adefisayo, who spoke alongside other experts at the ongoing Lagos Economic Summit, tagged: “Ehingbeti 2021 said Lagos state was changing the approach to education by enhancing curriculum and promoting technical knowledge.
She said, “I would like to focus my attention on we should optimise, not obsolescence. What is happening now is that our educational system, as a result of COVID- 19 and other happenings, is becoming obsolete, if it has not become.
“This is because graduates in the workforce are unable to function as required in their work duties in various industries, so definitely there is some sort of dysfunction in the educational system.
“One strategy we (Lagos State Ministry of Education) are looking at is giving all schools the option of either writing WASSCE and go to the university, or provide comprehensive school systems that will integrate the curriculum with 21st century skills, way beyond vocational skills such as tailoring, etc.
“Also, these comprehensive schools will teach students team work, leadership, digital literacy — not ‘Yahoo-Yahoo’, ability to use technology, attitudinal skills, etc.
“We do not have enough teachers and even the teachers we have, with all due respect, because they do not have the teachers’ skills yet. So, we need to address teachers’ training curriculum.
“We have to integrate technology into teaching and learning. This is another strategy we have to invest in. We need funding, so we need to work with the private sector, development partners and NGOs so that we can all actualize this vision.”