By Olufemi Oni, Ilorin

National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC) has urged the federal and state governments to give preference to English and Mathematics teachers while recruiting teachers for secondary schools in the country.

It also called on the Federal Ministry of Education as well as its state counterparts to provide and equip Language/Mathematics Laboratories in all Senior Secondary Schools, while the federal Ministry should serve as Examination Harmonizing Committee, and establish Examination Standard Committee in the commission.

The Commission said this in a communique issued at the end of a workshop on Re-skilling of Teachers of English and Mathematics for the North Central zone recently held in Ilorin, the Kwara state capital.

The communique, which the Board Chairperson of NSSEC, Ambassador (Dr) Nimota Nihinlola Akanbi, signed, said the objective of the workshop was to “Simplify methods of teaching English Language and Mathematics, train teachers with the best practices and equip them with techniques and modern pedagogy strategies that will enhance learning and teaching, and enhance professional growth.”

It called for training of Principals on Quality Assurance Personnel while both the Federal and State Ministries of Education should “mandate Public and Private schools to have a unified Data Base that would enable them track learners that do not merit promotion from moving from one school to another.

The Commission charged the federal Ministry of Education as well as State Ministries of Education to retrain Teachers of English, Mathematics for better and enhanced performance in the two vital subjects in the WAEC and NECO Examinations.

It also enjoined the state Ministries of Education to encourage Principals to sponsor teachers to attend WAEC/NECO Examination coordination training.

In her remarks at the end of the workshop, the NSSEC Chairperson,
Ambassador (Dr) Nimota Nihinlola Akanbi, congratulated the participants, urging them to relay all they learn to other teachers and also strive “to reduce the rate of failure among senior secondary schools’ learners”.

Participants from selected senior secondary schools in the North Central Zone, representative of the Kwara State government, the state Commissioner for Education and Human Capital Development, Hajia Saadatu Modibbo-Kawu as well as NSSEC Governing Board members, resources persons and NSSEC staff attended the workshop.