Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has thrown its weight behind plans by the Federal Government to phase out the policy separating Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) from Senior Secondary Schools (SSS).
The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, recently announced the proposal at a forum in Abuja.
He cited alarming data showing that over 20 million pupils drop out before reaching the senior secondary level as the primary reason for the policy shift.
He argued that the education system must retain these students to ensure they complete at least their full secondary school education.
Reacting to the proposal in an exclusive interview with Nigerian Tribune over the weekend, the National President of the NUT, Mr. Audu Titus Amba, described the move as a wise decision, noting that ineffective policies should always be reviewed.
“When you try a policy and you find out it is not working, you change it,” Amba said.
“That decision is for policymakers to make, and I believe that is what informed this proposal. The government wants to introduce another policy that may likely work. As teachers, we have no problem with that. Our role is to collaborate and implement government policies across all levels of governance.”
Amba explained that the original objectives behind separating JSS from SSS, which began in 1986, have not been achieved.
“There is no major impact of that separation on our education, and this is glaring to everyone.
“That is why, as far as we are concerned, we don’t have any problem with the government changing the policy. After all, we had the ‘Form One to Form Five’ secondary education format before changing to the JSS and SSS structure.
“During that period, students chose the subjects they sat for in their terminal examinations in Form Three. I am a product of that arrangement, which ended in 1985,” he noted.
He added, “Ours is to align with the government’s policy, provided teachers are taken into consideration. The government must provide a conducive environment, look after our welfare, and ensure that teachers can teach and students can learn in a secure environment without fear of attack. We don’t want a situation where our schools have now become soft targets for kidnappers. What we want is a policy that works for the good of everyone and the betterment of society.”
When asked about recent statistics showing that only 25 per cent of 10-year-olds in Nigerian schools can read and comprehend simple text, Amba attributed it to varying learning paces among children.
“Some children learn fast, while others are slow learners. That difference is what accounts for the statistics, and the government should take this into account when designing educational policies,” he stated.