The Teachers Continuous Training Institute (TCTI) Biase, Cross River State has vowed to give top priority to the retraining of Technical and Vocational Education Teachers in Nigeria.
It also said it was a way to produce graduates with requisite skills to contribute meaningfully to the development of the country.
The Director-General of the institute, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja, also advocated for a skill-based curriculum in schools in order to address the teething challenge of graduate unemployment in Nigeria.
Adedoja, who spoke in Ogoja, Cross River State, noted that “skill-based curriculum in schools had become the trend in the 21st Century knowledge economy, as the high rate of employable graduates from our educational system has become a great burden and concern to stakeholders in the economic and educational sectors, and therefore needs to be addressed urgently.”
In a statement in Abuja, he added that the TCTI, Biase, the initiative of the Cross River State Governor, Prof. Ben Ayade had made the re-skilling of teachers of vocational and technical education a top priority in its retraining programme.
According to him, other subject teachers must also undergo re-skilling for child-centred skill acquisition rather than emphasis being placed on curriculum-based learning.
Adedoja also spoke at the workshop for head teachers of public and private secondary schools in Cross River State which took place in three centres in the senatorial districts of the state: Biase, Ikom and Ogoja.and attended by 965 Principals and Vice Principals of public and private secondary Schools in Cross Rivers State.
The Deputy Governor of the state, Prof. Ivara Ejemot Esu, who declared the workshop open referred to TCTI Biase as one of the best legacies of Governor Ben Ayade-led administration in Cross River State.
During the opening ceremony of the workshop, the Cross River State Commissioner for Education, Dr Godwin Amanke stressed the need for retraining courses for teachers.
The Chairman of Cross River State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) Senator Dr Steven Odey re-assured the institute that Cross River State SUBEB and TCTI, Biase are natural partners in teacher development.
During the phase three of the workshop held on Saturday in Ogoja, the State Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Gregory Olayi commended the efforts of the pioneer Director-General TCTI, Biase, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja and supported the need for continuous re-training of teachers.
He emphasised that “the retraining should be borne by the government and not by the teachers or head teachers, in view of the poor remuneration for the teaching profession in the country, which ought to be addressed.”