Two hundred and twenty graduating students of the Faulty of Education, University of Nigeria Nsukka have been inducted and certified qualified teachers by the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN). 

The Registrar of TRCN who was also the Chairman of the occasion, Professor Mark Wokocha conducted the induction ceremony. He said that TRCN has the mandate to promote excellence in education through effective registration and licensing of teachers, to monitor and supervise mandatory continuing professional development programmes and maintain discipline among teachers.

Continuing, he said that TRCN directs its vision to regulate teachers’ education, training and practice at all levels and sectors of the Nigerian education system in order to match teacher quality, discipline, professionalism, reward and dignity with international standards. According to him, “in a bid to ensure strict adherence to professional ethics in the teaching profession, TRCN has successfully established Teacher’s Investigating Panel (TIP) in every State and the Federal Capital and Teachers Disciplinary Tribunal (TDP) to further instill discipline among teachers.”

He added that TRCN is working with Teachers Training Council in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, South Africa, etc to ensure that Nigerian teachers who wish to teach overseas are registered and licensed in those countries automatically. To confirm his statement, Professor Wokocha said that TRCN has issued letters of professional standing to numerous applicants seeking teaching appointments in overseas since 2007 till date and they have been employed abroad.

Before the oath taking exercise, the Chairman urged graduands to take the exercise very seriously and with commitment to professionalism stating that oath is the most important statutory requirement for admission into any profession. He said, “all inductees are accepted into the teaching profession without the rigors of undergoing professional qualifying examinations.” He continued, “Your colleagues who failed to do this while in school may have to write the professional qualifying examinations (PQE) in addition to other rigors involved in the registration.

The Dean, Faculty of Education, Professor Sam Ezeudu advised the graduands to make TRCN motto (teaching for excellence) their watch word. He urged them to teach for excellence by employing the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes they have imbibed to promote production of functional citizens of Nigeria. He said. “Note that you are the actual implementers of the school curricular, you must keep abreast of new developments in your content areas and the best practices in pedagogy if not your products would be dysfunctional.”

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Bartho Okolo who was represented by the Dean Faculty of Education advised the graduands to be conscious of the opportunities before them as well as responsibilities they will face as professional teachers. In his statement, “the tasks ahead could be very challenging but as lions and lionesses, we expect you to be undaunted and to triumph.”

Omanwa Ekwueme

UNN