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Introduction: Students play significant role in the advancement of any

society. This is because they constitute the bulk of the labour force that
will man the future manpower of the state, be it in the area of business,
politics, religious, diplomacy, law, medicine, science and technology and
even family life. Put differently it therefore implies that the quality of
students in the school system today has a profound influence or direct
relationship with the quality of labour force tomorrow. No wonder that it
is always said “The youths are the leaders of tomorrow”.

The future of Nigerian education depends on the quality of

students admitted into the various Faculties, Schools and Institutes of
education who are trained to qualify as professional teachers. “No
nation can rise above the quality of its teachers”. This paper therefore
examine issues such as who is a Nigeria education student, professional
attributes of Nigeria education student, challenges of Nigeria education
student and the way forward.

Who is a Nigeria Education Student?

Generally, student is a person who receives training, teaching or

instruction in an educational institution. Such training may be at the pre-
primary, primary post primary and the tertiary levels. It may also be at
the non-formal education sector. Relative to this paper, education
students are crop of learners undergoing training to qualify as
professional teachers. The scope and constitute of such programme may
vary (depending on the programme) but the end product is the same ie.
to produce teachers needed in the various sectors of the teaching
profession. Such teacher training programmes according to Jeremiah
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and Alamina (2017) are carried out in teacher training institutions such
as, Colleges of Education, Faculties of Education in Universities, Institute
of Education, National Teachers Institute, National Open University of
Nigerian others are National mathematics center, and Institute of
Nigerian Languages. Learners in each of these Institutions as stated
above constitute the bulk of education students.

Professional Attribute of Nigeria Education Students

A profession can be defined as training that requires specialized body of

knowledge, such knowledge are acquired through the content area of
the programme. As education student, you are expected to acquire
certain attribute that will enhance your professional competence as
trained teachers. Such attitudes include
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1. Knowledge of the content area

2. Knowledge of the school curriculum, syllabus scheme of work, and
lesson plan
3. Knowledge of teaching methods and skills
4. Knowledge of the use and application of instructional materials
5. Knowledge of evaluation technique
6. Knowledge of learning psychology

Challenges of Nigeria Education Students

Challenges of Nigeria education students are many. This paper

examined some of such challenges are:

1. Admission characteristics
2. Psychological issues
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3. Instructional materials and facilities

4. Excess course load and
5. Non professionalization of teaching

Admission Characteristics

This implies the admission requirement for a candidate to qualify or

pursue programme in any of the teacher training programme as
indicated above. The entry characteristics into education institution vary
or differ from those of other profession such as law, medicine and
Engineering. Jeremiah and Ethel (2018) noted that admission into
teacher training programmes in Nigeria fall short of the required
standard. JAMB cut off mark into faculties of education in Nigeria
Universities are always the least compared to other profession. To
worsen the issue, most students admitted into faculties of education and
even colleges of education did not opt for courses in education.
Interaction with them will reveal the following;

Teacher: How are you my friend

Student: I am fine

Teacher: Are you a student in this university?

Student: Yes sir

Teacher: Which faculty?

Student: Humanities, science or management

Teacher: Which Department?

Student: History Education, Science Education or Business Education

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Teacher: That’s good. Why did you read education?

Student: hmmmm sha I wanted to read Law, Medicine, Engineering,

Mass Communication, Architecture, Theater Arts etc. Since JAMB did
not give me those course I decided mange education

Jeremiah and Ethel again explained that students enrolment into

colleges of education and other teacher training institutions is dwindling
every year. In order to provide admission opportunities to candidates,
university administrators always shift candidates who may not have met
the admission requirements in other faculties to faculty of education.
Such student accepts to read education because other courses which
they opted for failed them. Thus the facilities of education and other
related teacher training institution become a dumping ground for those
students whose marriage and romance has failed in other courses.

The implication is that a large army of education students in

Nigeria including those of you seated here does not have the knowledge
and affective disposition for teaching as a profession. This ugly trend is
a dangerous signal for the teaching profession.

Psychological Challenges

Most teacher training institutions such as universities and colleges of

education subject their students to take courses in other faculties
outside education to enhance the content area of the students in such
specific subject. For example in our University (Otuoke), History
Education student offers courses in history along side with student from
faculty of humanities, science education students offers courses in
science along with students in pure and applied science, business
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education students offers courses in management science along with

students in management science. In this arrangement, education
students area not given fair treatment on the part of the lecturers from
such faculties, as such lecturers are not trained teachers and cannot
apply psychological and pedagogical skills in handling the students.
Also their interaction with fellow students in those faculties remain
volatile as such students implant some degree of inferiority complex on
the education students by calling them different names such as ordinary
teacher, nwa-teacher, and poor teacher.

Such inferiority complex grows rapidly on the education students as they

in-turn know within themselves that at the ambinitio they did not opt for
education or teaching as a career. Psychological problem such as this,
affect the education students throughout his training and also during his
professional practice as a trained teacher.

Instructional Materials and Facilities

The role of instructional materials and facilities in any teaching

encounter cannot be over emphasized. Instructional material and
facilities enhances students achievement, retention and the development
of positive attitude to learning. Most teacher training institutions in
Nigeria lack the needed instructional materials and facilities as compared
to other faculties. In most Universities, Faculties of Law, Engineering,
Medicine and Management Sciences are always given top priority by the
funding institution before faculty of education is looked into. In most
situations, facilities of education lecturers are not provided with good
office space, furniture and other facilities that will enhance their job
performance. Facilities such as workshop, laboratories and libraries are
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not even provided. In other situation, the classroom environment fall

short of the needed standard. In a situation such as this, instructional
delivery system will be skewed, thus making it difficult for education
student to develop the needed skills, pedagogies and affective
disposition needed by a professional teacher.

Excess Course Load

In most teacher training institutions in Nigeria, the programme of

studies is divided into number of courses ranging from the theoretical to
the practical component. The type and number of courses offered by the
student has a significant influence on the professional knowledge and
skills required. On the other hand, excessive fragmentation of the
courses may leads to confusion, superficial knowledge and lack of
direction on the part of the learner. In teacher training institution,
education students are made to offer more courses in education, general
studies and the subject area compared to their counterpart in other
profession such as Law, Engineering and Medicine. The effect of such
excess work load is stress, lack of direction and superficial knowledge.
This factor goes a long way to affect the content area and pedagogical
skills of the education students.

Non-Professionalization of Teaching

In the past decades, government has taken some bold steps to

professionalize teaching in Nigeria. Such effort include introduction of
Teacher Registration Council of Nigeria, re-training and retraining of
teachers and government policy statement on Teacher Education as
contained in the National Policy on Education (2004). Those efforts are
commendable but are not adequate enough for one to say that teaching
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in Nigeria is a profession compared to Law, Medicine, and Engineering.

Teaching in Nigeria fall short of most basic characteristics of a true
profession. Jeremiah and Alamina (2017) observed that teaching is the
only profession in Nigeria were a non teacher can be appointed Minister
or Commissioner for education. In the political history of Nigeria, a
teacher or non professional has never served as Minister of Health or
Justices. Closely related to this, teaching in Nigeria still suffers the
problem of low public prestige. Most students admitted into teacher
training institutions come from law socio-economic background. People
do not have regard for teachers as such the profession tend to attract
people who seen to have failed in other areas. Other related problems
include lack of coordinated Union, low entry point and non-enforcement
of code of conduct and monopoly to practice. In a situation such as this,
the education student lack confidence on the teaching profession which
induces negative attitude towards the pursuit of the profession.

Recommendation
1. Teacher training institution should be made to attract students with
high level of intelligence, skill and affective disposition to the teaching
profession and not those who are compelled by admission
circumstance to read education. This can be achieved through high
cut-off mark and psychological testing and profiling of candidates
before admitting them into teacher training institution
2. Education students should not be subjected to go to other faculties to
offer courses. Lectures in those faculties whom our students offer
their courses should be made to come to faculty of education and
teach our students, such lecturer should be made to undergo training
to qualify as professional teachers before they can teach our students.
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The lecture time should be adjusted and classroom provided for the
education student.
3. Instructional material and needed facilitates should be adequately
provided for the education students and teachers. Teaching is a noble
profession, as a noble profession university administrators’ should
place top priority to faculties of education and indeed teachers training
institution in the provision of school plant. Is it not the teacher that
taught the Medical Doctors, Engineer, Politician, Business man, Lawyer
Clergy and Artist etc. “The absence of the teacher in any society is
end such society”.
4. The curriculum content of teacher training institution should be re-
structured to enable the education student to offer few but important
or relevant courses. Some of the general studies courses that may not
be relevant to the education student should be expunged. Some
related education courses should be merged as one course. The
education programme in teacher training institution should be
arranged in module to accommodate individual difference and in-
depth study as it is obtained in most advanced countries of the world.
5. Teaching in Nigeria should be given professional status through
relevant laws and act. Only professional teachers should be engaged
in teaching at every levels of education. Special teachers salary
structure should be paid to teachers excluding other allowance,
teachers should be motivated through study leave and other benefit
such as in-service training programmers, conferences, workshops and
seminar. Entry into teaching profession should be enhanced to first
degree. NCE and other related qualifications should serve as entry
requirement for admission into first level of teacher education
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programme. In conclusion teachers reward should start from this

earth before he gets to heaven.
Summary and Conclusion

This paper examined the challenges of education student and teachers

profession attribute. In this effect, the paper explained the contextual
meaning of education student relative to their training institutions in
Nigeria. Professional attributes of education students were also outlined
as a measure of explaining the expected skills and competences needed
by a professional teacher. The paper also discussed some problems of
education students. In conclusion, teacher education programme should
be re-structured in the light of the above problems or circumstances to
give the education students a sense of direction in the pursuit of their
career. Thanks

REFERENCES

Federal Republic of Nigeria (2004) National Policy on Education.

Lagos: FME Press
Jeremiah, S & Alamina J.I., (2017) Curriculum Implementation *
Instruction. Owerri: Cel-Bez Publishers.
Jeremiah, S. & Ethel J, (2018) Admission Criterias and Student
Emolument in Teacher Training Institutions in Nigeria. Journal of
Contenprorary Studies 3 (1) 35-48.
Jeremiah, S (2019) Teachers Role in Community Development. In LR
Akuodulu Etal (ED) Compendium of curriculum theorization,
Development, designing and innovation in Nigeria 432-452.
Owerri: Alvan Shell Publisher