The Impact of Unqualified and Underpaid Teachers on Primary Education in Nigeria
Every child has primary education as their first block of education. A child’s ability to read and write basic information that builds the foundation of education is dependent on primary school education. Nigerian children face learning problems because the available teachers are not teaching well.
Most primary school teachers don’t get paid well or don’t have the necessary qualifications to teach. The education system fails immediately because of this.
There is no qualified teacher to teach in Nigerian primary schools. Among the primary school teachers some have not undergone training for teachers while others can’t teach children in their early grades.
Lack of motivating factors caused by salaries that are insufficient and deplorable working environment strengthens the motivation challenge among teachers. Students and the Nigerian education system suffer because of this.
The Impact of Unqualified and Underpaid Teachers on Primary Education in Nigeria
This post looks at the implications of having unqualified teachers and poor remuneration in Nigerian primary schools. This post looks at teacher related obstacles and student consequences and suggestions for educational system development.
Below are the effects of unqualified teachers in primary education in Nigeria
1. Teachers Will Use Bad Teaching Methods
The absence of training among unqualified teachers produces poor teaching results. These teachers struggle with lack of skills in student engagement and creating lesson plans and assessing student progress. Education fails more when students cannot understand core subjects like English and Maths. Weak literacy and numeracy skills become the norm among primary school students as they get poor teaching instructions.
2. Students Will Lose Confidence in Learning
Proper early education is absent so students lose confidence in learning basic subjects. A student having difficulty learning will develop discouragement and loss of interest in school activities. The absence of educational value makes students drop out of school as they see no reason to stay in school.
3. Students Will Fail Big Time
The quality of education provided by teachers causes students to fail their exams. Majority of students perform poorly in core subjects according to BECE results. The absence of foundation learning creates challenges that prevent students from succeeding in subsequent levels of education beyond primary school.
4. The gap Between Public and Private Schools Widens
Public schools in Nigeria struggle because they lack qualified teaching staff. Private primary schools prefer professionally trained teaching staff and pay better. Private school education exceeds government school education and that’s why you see a clear educational quality difference between the two. Children from disadvantaged background face unequal opportunities in education as their parents can’t afford to pay for non-government education.
The Effects of Underpaid Teachers on Primary Education
So what are the effects of underpaid teachers? Let’s now look at them one after the other.
1. Discourages & Lack of Motivation
Financial issues among educators leads to motivational loss for them to perform at their best. Those who are financially strained tend to neglect lesson development and improvement practices. For them the profession is just a means of livelihood and not as a means to educate students.
2. Change of Career or Moving to Better Opportunities
Teachers change career or move to private schools because they are not paid enough and experience negative work environment. Some move to private schools while others change career entirely. There is a shortage of teaching staff in public primary schools which makes it difficult for students to get quality education.
3. Struggles with Personal Development
To improve their teaching skills educators must participate in continuous professional development. Educators who earn poor pay don’t have enough money to attend professional development courses. They stick to old teaching methods that have no impact on their students.
4. Teacher Start Interacting with Student Poorly
Financial issues brings about emotional and behavioral change among teachers which affects their teaching approach in the classroom. Teachers who are unhappy tend to be impatient with their students and create unfriendly learning environment. Teachers who are financially strained display their annoyance to students which affects their emotional state and school success.
The Long-Term Consequences
1. Poor Quality of Workforce
Children who receive substandard primary education will experience academic difficulties in higher levels of learning and in their career. The low skill level of workers is a big problem for Nigeria to achieve economic growth.
2. Poverty Will Be High
Education is the tool to overcome poverty. The poor education children receive means fewer job opportunities for them in the future. Many families will suffer poverty for generations because of this.
3. National Development Will Be Weak
A nation progresses according to the professional capabilities of its citizens. When education suffers the nation produces fewer skilled professionals in medical, engineering and technological fields. This slow down the progress of the nation.
What Are The Suggested Solutions to Cub This?
1. Government Should Invest in Teacher Training Programmes
Government should ensure all primary school teachers are well trained. Training institutions should be upgraded and teachers should be encouraged to continue learning.
2. Teachers Should Be Paid More
Higher teacher remuneration will keep them committed to their job and workplace. Government institutions should increase teacher wages while extending medical insurance and housing allowance.
3. Good Working Condition for Teachers
Quality school facilities with enough teaching materials and student-teacher ratio enhance teaching effectiveness and reduce teaching stress. Schools should provide teachers with modern instructional materials that boost student outcomes.
4. Only Trained Teachers Should Be Employed
Teaching profession in primary schools should be restricted to trained teachers. Government should establish stringent hiring standards for teachers which schools should follow.
5. Community and Private Sector Involvement
Community members and private organizations should establish educational partnership with the national education system. Community monitoring of schools and corporate funding for teacher training programmes will move the education system forward.
Conclusion
Nigeria’s primary education system is plagued with the shortage of qualified teachers and low teacher remuneration. Teacher training excel in education decreases when their pay is low thus reducing their performance. The situation affects student performance and leads to high failure rate and underdevelopment of the nation.
Government should prioritize teacher training and salary increase to develop the education system. Teachers need better workplace environment which schools should provide. A better future can be achieved through education so providing trained teachers with fair pay will build a prosperous Nigeria.
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