Towards a Paradigm Shift in the Production of Vocational Education Teachers in Nigeria

Modern education the world over now envisions achievement of science and technological advancement for economic growth and poverty reduction. The imperative is for teachers to deliver instruction in vocational skills, attitudes, understanding and knowledge related to occupations in various sectors of the Nigerian economic and social life. If we believe that the quality of an educational system is a correlate of teacher quality then, logically, the teacher should be the first to acquire this vocational identity and orientation to be able to transmit the same to students. Today, schools have ‘talk-and-chalk’ teachers teaching vocation education students with traditional skills - dictate long notes, memorize books, drill and indoctrinate skills rather than skills that reduce classroom experiences to real world situations. This means teaching without teachers and represents a fundamental missing link. A paradigm shift is required. Therefore, it is recommended that teacher training (production) programmes (in terms of curricula, content, pedagogy and funding) be reformed to produce sharp and appropriate teacher response to this new concept of education.