BAUCHI State Governor Bala Mohammed has approved the recruitment of 3,000 new teachers to boost education in the state.
The approval came a few weeks after The ICIR reported the toll which inadequate teachers took on the state.
The report uncovered the dire state of primary and secondary schools in the state because of the qualified and adequate number of teachers.
The report found that many schools in the state were understaffed, with some having only one or two teachers to manage entire schools, while others had teachers who were not qualified to teach certain subjects.
In one school, a teacher who was employed to teach social studies was also teaching Mathematics and the English Language, despite having no formal qualifications in these subjects.
The teacher admitted that he was struggling to teach these subjects and that the students were not learning effectively.
The investigation also found that the state government had not recruited new teachers in over a decade, despite the growing demand for education in the state.
According to the investigation, the last recruitment of teachers in the state was in 2014, and since then, many teachers have retired or passed away without being replaced.
The report discovered that the shortage of teachers has led to a decline in the quality of education in the state, with students performing poorly in national exams.
For instance, in 2019, only 23 per cent of students in Bauchi State public schools got credit in five subjects, including Mathematics and English, while in 2020, the percentage increased to 24 per cent.
The investigation also found that the state government had shown a lack of commitment to addressing the teacher shortage, despite acknowledging the problem.
In addition, the government failed to implement effective recruitment strategies, and the few teachers were often overworked and underpaid.
The report highlighted the need for the state government to take immediate action to address the teacher shortage and improve the quality of education in the state. This includes recruiting new teachers, providing training and support for existing teachers, and improving the working conditions and pay for teachers.
In response to the investigation, the state government announced plans to recruit new teachers who will be deployed to junior and senior secondary schools across the state.
This was disclosed in a statement released on the state government’s website on Friday, January 17.
According to the project coordinator for the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) project in the state, Ali Gar, 2,000 of these new teachers will be assigned to junior secondary schools, while 1,000 will be posted to senior secondary schools.
The goal of this recruitment exercise, according to the state, is to strengthen the educational system and empower young girls through education.
The state government said the approval of the recruitment was part of Governor Bala Mohammed’s administration’s efforts to improve education and create a more inclusive learning environment.
A reporter with the ICIR
A Journalist with a niche for quality and a promoter of good governance