The Nigeria Union of Teachers has urged President Bola Tinubu to prioritise teachers’ values and welfare to make the profession more attractive to the younger generation.
The National President of NUT, Comrade Audu Amba, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja.
He urged the government to make teachers role models and recognise the teaching profession as a pillar of societal advancement.
Amba criticised the current situation where teaching is seen as a “Hobson’s choice” among admission and job seekers — an option not because it is their preferred choice, but because it is the only option available after others have been filled.
He said deliberate policies should be made to place teachers in the forefront among other professions and make teaching a preferred choice for youths.
Amba said many students have little or no passion for the teaching profession, which is most evident when candidates score low marks in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.
According to him, when a candidate scores below the cut-off marks for their first and second-choice courses, they are often compelled to study education in order not to lose admission for the year.
“Today, in our secondary schools, everybody is scrambling to get 300 and above in the UTME so that they can study medicine.
“The university system has made it clear that before you study medicine, you must score 300 marks and above. Why do such rules not apply to education?
“Those students who want to study medicine to become doctors — who taught and will still teach them? Is it not the teacher?” he retorted.
According to him, if the teacher is not sound, how can they impart the necessary knowledge and training the child needs to study medicine?
“It should be that the best candidates who score 300 and above should study education and become teachers.
“That is what is happening in some countries that have decided to change their direction, and that is why they are getting it right.
“A teacher should be very intelligent, knowledgeable, and among the best to impart knowledge,” he said.
Amba urged the government to take a cue from countries like Finland, where the teaching profession is highly valued, respected, and attracts many applicants.
According to him, Finland prioritises education and has systems that ensure teachers are respected professionals with very high salaries, as well as a strong sense of autonomy, stability, and security in their work.
“In fact, if you go to Finland today, you’ll be proud to be called a teacher because teaching is not just lucrative, but also very challenging.
“But today in Nigeria, parents don’t even encourage their children to enter the teaching profession, not even the students themselves.
“Go to classrooms and ask little children in primary school, ‘Who wants to be a teacher?’ Hardly anyone will raise their hand.
“But ask, ‘Who wants to be a doctor, lawyer, or engineer?’ They will raise their hands.
“Why is it so? Because they feel those professions are valued, respected, and well remunerated,” he said.
Amba therefore urged the government to put policies in place to change this trend and mindset by making teachers role models and encouraging the best candidates to become teachers.
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