Qualifying Exams: TRCN cancels results of teachers engaged in malpractice

The Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria,TRCN, says it has cancelled results of teachers who engaged in malpractice in the Professional Qualifying Examination, PQE, it  organised in November, 2023.The council disclosed that more than 3,963 teachers failed the examination which was held across the country.The TRCN conducts the Professional Qualifying Examination to test the competence of teachers if they are fit to be in the  teaching field.The Registrar of TRCN, Prof. Josiah Ajiboye, told newsmen, Monday, at an interactive session that a total 15,753 teachers sat for the November diet which commenced on November 23, 2023, and ended on November 25, 2023.But he said that out of the number, 3,963 teachers fail the competency test.In his words,  "A total of 15,753 sat for the examination in 38 Centres across the country. Out of this, we have 10,636 that passed which is about 72.9 per cent and those that failed are 3,963 representing 37.1 per cent. You will agree this is a very good result. "All the cases of examination malpractices that were reported were treated accordingly all over the country at the management level and the results cancelled as punitive measures. All the cases were identified or recorded because we have evidence against them." He said.The registrar who noted that the Council had been confronted with some challenges because of the nation's transition in power, however maintained that TRCN was able to achieve its set goals for the year 2023, even as he added that the over 150 million debt he met when he assumed office as Registrar had been cleared off.Reeling out some of its achievements in 2023, he stated that PQE was conducted in  over 100 institutions, six batches of PQE was conducted online for Nigerians in diaspora and results released immediately, inductions were carried out in over 100 institutions, and appreciable progress was made with development partners on professional standard. Speaking further, Ajiboye who insisted that the teaching profession was no longer an all comers affair or a "job for the boys," disclosed that over 2.3 million teachers have been registered, out of which over 400,000 have been fully licensed by the Council.While noting that less than 50 percent of teachers in private institutions were not qualified, the Registrar disclosed that TRCN would focus on private institutions where according to him, a large chunk of challenges in the teaching sector was emanating from.He further hinted on moves by TRCN to get a fiat from office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), to empower the Council on enforcement and compliance through prosecution of unqualified teachers to stem the tide. He said, "We are working with the AGF to get a fiat. It will help us to prosecute and go after erring institutions because the law establishing TRCN utterly gives us the power to prosecute but we need the Fiat to be able to do that. "We are discussing with the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation to be able to prosecute and when we get that, it will not be difficult for us to be able to go after some of these institutions. "The problem we have is that education is on the concurrent list; these private schools are not registered by the federal government. They are registered by state governments. We have been discussing with them to confirm the list of their teachers to ensure they are not cheaters  and that they are qualified teachers not cheaters. In 2024, I want to assure Nigerians that we will make sure we shift our focus with more emphasis on private schools."