Critique Perspective to Financing Technical Teacher Education in Nigeria

Abstract

Technical teacher education deals with the training of technical personnel for the purposes of facilitating the creation of basic awareness of technological literacy to its citizenry. Nigeria’s colonial education and training system had witnessed serious criticisms based on lack of adequate manpower to manage the country’s production sectors and lack of visionary orientation to provide the necessary developmental services. It is only now that Nigeria is trying to reform her educational curriculum towards science and technology which is manifested in the adoption of the present 9-3-4 system of education. The philosophy of this new system of education was to have a functional education. A utilitarian education geared effectively to the realities and needs of the labor market and to allow, for sufficient manpower application (or services) in solving the country’s most pressing developmental problems. Hence, the need to train teachers who are sufficiently informed in technical education concepts and its application of its theoretical principles to practical problems. However, the system is plagued by lack of funds, personnel and facilities necessary for the envisaged training and national economic development within the foreseeable future. This paper highlights the funding requirements, imperatives for proper funding of technical teacher education, state of the funding of technical teacher education, and alternative strategies for effective and efficient means of resuscitating it.

Keywords: Technical Teacher Education, Funding, Quality