BY: ASSESSMENT OF THE TEACHER QUALIFICATION STATUS OF UNIVERSITY TEACHERS IN NORTHWEST NIGERIA: BAYERO UNIVERSITY KANO IN PERSPECTIVE Ekpiwre, C. A. Department of Educational Foundations, Federal College of Education, Kano-Nigeria

Abstract Both the National Policy on Education (NPE) and the Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) gave the directive that all teachers in Nigerian schools should be trained teachers to enable them to be more effective in their teaching responsibilities.This applies to university teachers as well; they are required to acquire teacher qualifications such as Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) or Professional Diploma in Education (PDE) or Technical Teachers Certificate (TTC) or at least, National Certificate of Education (NCE) in addition to possessing academic qualifications in their specialized areas of study. It is on this ground that this study carried out an assessment of university teachers’ qualification status in Bayero University, Kano. The population of the study comprised all the teachers in the university. Data was collected through an examination of the documented official records of the qualification profile of all the teachers in the university obtained from the various faculties of the university. The collected data was analyzed through descriptive statistic of simple percentage and frequency. Based on the findings of the study and in order to strengthen the teacher qualification status of teachers in the university, a few recommendations, for example, special salary scale should be made available to university teachers with appropriate teacher qualifications, were offered. Keywords— Teacher, University Teacher, Teacher Qualification

INTRODUCTION The importance of subject matter knowledge, professional development (which refers to continuous on-the-job training conducted in workshops and seminars) and informal training acquired through on- the-job experience have been acknowledged in studies [4; 7; 8; 10] as variables that enhance teachers’ pedagogical competencies. However, the emphasis is that knowledge of subject matter, continuous on-the-job training and teaching experience must be linked with knowledge in general pedagogy [2; 9]. The importance of pre-service and in-service teacher training in developing pedagogical competencies has been emphasized in the literature.

INTRODUCTION (CONT.) Apparently, in agreement with the foregoing, the National Policy on Education stipulates that teachers in all educational institutions in the country should be trained teachers [6]. This line of reasoning was again supported by the Teachers’ Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) when it stated unequivocally that all persons who perform jobs that rightly and legally constitute teaching at all levels of the country’s education system should possess teacher qualifications [14; 15]. No doubt, both the NPE and TRCN’s directives were made against the backdrop of the premise that complying with them would enhance teachers’ pedagogical competencies. This implies that university teachers who acquire relevant teacher qualifications, for example, Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) or at least, National Certificate of Education (NCE) in addition to having academic qualifications in their specialized areas of study, will likely develop the necessary professional skills that will enable them to become more competent in their teaching responsibilities.

S TATEMENT OF THE P ROBLEM University teachers’ level of compliance to the directives by both the NPE and TRCN that teachers in all educational institutions in the country should acquire necessary teacher qualifications (FME, 2004; TRCN, 2005a, 2005b) certainly needs to be empirically investigated, as there is a dearth of information regarding this issue. Therefore, the research problem of this study is to find out the teacher qualification status of university teachers in Bayero University Kano. P URPOSE OF THE S TUDY The purpose of the present study is to determine the teacher qualification status of university teachers in Bayero University, Kano. R ESEARCH Q UESTION In pursuance of the objective of the present study, the following research question was postulated: What is the teacher qualification status of university teachers in Bayero University Kano?

M ETHODS AND P ROCEDURES The study was carried out through an examination of the official records of all the university teachers’ qualification profile obtained from the various faculties/departments of the university for the 2012/2013 academic session. The data collected were presented and analyzed through frequencies and percentages.

Table 1: Distribution of academic staff according to teacher qualification status in Bayero University, Kano S/No.Faculty UTWTQUTWoTQ Total% No.% % 1.Agriculture Arts & Islamic Studies Comp. Sci. & Inf. Tech Education Engineering Law Medicine Sciences* Soc. & Mgt. Studies** TOTAL

. C ONCLUSION AND R ECOMMENDATIONS The attitude of university teachers from other faculties other than education will at the long run determine how well they are willing to comply with the NPE and TRCN’s directive to them that they should acquire necessary teacher qualifications (FME, 2004; TRCN, 2005a, 2005b). Nevertheless, even if eventually this policy becomes accepted by a majority of university teachers, it will take a long while before they acquire the necessary teacher qualifications. Therefore, to facilitate a quick acceptance of this directive, the following recommendations are made:  University teachers should be informed, in concrete terms, through seminars and workshops, on the ways by which their teaching skills can be enhanced through pedagogical trainings that are provided in teacher training programmes that lead to the acquisition of appropriate teacher qualifications.  Curriculum planners should endevour to ensure that the teacher training programmes that university teachers are exposed to are enriched and made to suit their teaching roles which are in some ways different from the teaching roles of primary and secondary teachers considering the age and maturation differences existing among their different students/pupils.  University teachers who are willing to undergo teacher training that leads to the acquisition of necessary teacher qualifications should be given special study grant.  Special salary scale should be made available to university teachers with appropriate teacher qualifications

END OF PRESENTAION THANK YOU FOR LISTENING