In Nigeria, there is a popular saying which states that teachers’ reward is in Heaven. This literarily means that no matter the amount of money one pays to a teacher it will never be enough as compensation to a teacher when compared with the value of the services he or she renders to society.
In my view, teachers should be paid as much as bankers in order to attract the best brains into the profession. They deserve to be well compensated. Indeed, teachers deserve their rewards both “here” on earth and in the “hereafter”.
It is sad to note that, the welfare of the Nigerian teacher is generally poor, especially, at the primary school level. No one is anymore attracted to the profession. Something needs to be done urgently! The profession that used to be the first choice of the best brains in the society is now seen as the last option for the jobless.
In the past the status of a teacher is next to that of the District Head and or a Village Head in the society. Teachers were highly admired and cherished. Sadly, the profession is no longer cherished by the people. It no longer attracts the best brains. Year- in- year- out, teachers’ welfare continues to deteriorate.
It baffles me to note that primary education which is the foundation of education is largely being handled by the most dysfunctional tiers of government. Both the federal and state governments intervention shows little or nothing. No building stands without a sound and or a solid foundation. For us to get it right, we must build a solid foundation in our educational system. We must get well motivated and qualified teachers to manage the system.
Local governments or state governments cannot adequately maintain primary education anymore. The local governments, due to lack of financial autonomy and poor IGR, lack the financial capacity to efficiently and effectively fund primary education.
Primary school teachers in virtually all the states of the federation are among the worst hit in terms poor and unpaid salaries. Their working conditions are poor. Even at that they are not being paid as and when due. Their employers pay little or no attention to their training and retraining. The teaching profession has become an “all- comers job”. It is now a platform for political patronage or compensation to political thugs. The financing model of primary education in Nigeria needs a rethink. It is high time the federal government paid more attention to primary education.
Nurudeen Dauda, Kaduna State