About 375 teachers in Kaduna State have registered for the second batch of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) Professional Qualifying Examination (PQE).

The Kaduna State Coordinator and North-West Zonal Coordinator of TRCN, Esther Ayubanata, disclosed this while speaking during the examination in Kaduna on Saturday.

Mrs Ayubanata said the examination was designed to assess teachers’ professional competence and ensure that only qualified and certified individuals could teach in Nigerian schools.

She emphasised that teaching was a specialised profession that required adequate training, certification and licensing.

“Our vision is to ensure that every teacher in the classroom is first trained, certified and licensed by TRCN to enable them to effectively impart knowledge to pupils and students.

“Just like other professional bodies, you cannot afford to have quacks in the teaching profession. Every teacher must obtain TRCN certification to qualify to teach,” she said.

She attributed the reduction in the number of candidates compared to previous examinations with the adoption of online registration and the prevailing economic challenges, which had made it difficult for some teachers to pay the registration fees.

Mrs Ayubanata explained that candidates with a Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE), Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.), or a bachelor’s degree with a Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) or Professional Diploma in Education (PDE) were eligible to sit for the examination.

She said successful candidates would receive professional certificates, enhancing their recognition and mobility within and outside Nigeria.

The coordinator further disclosed that TRCN had commenced a nationwide compliance exercise to ensure that teachers in public and private schools were duly registered and licensed.

According to her, the exercise involves visiting schools to verify the professional status of teachers, with the aim of achieving 100 per cent compliance.

She urged teachers without the required professional qualifications to take advantage of the Accelerated Teachers Professionalisation Pathway (ATPP), introduced by the Federal Ministry of Education, TRCN and the National Teachers’ Institute (NTI).

She explained that the six-month programme was designed for individuals already teaching but yet to obtain the requisite professional qualifications.

Mrs Ayubanata said that the programme would provide beneficiaries with the necessary training and opportunity to obtain professional certification and registration with TRCN.

She warned that teachers who failed to meet the requirements or refused to take advantage of the programme risked losing their jobs.

The coordinator commended the Kaduna State chapter of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS) for supporting teachers to participate in the examination across the state’s 33 local government areas.

One of the candidates, Umar Mayere, a Graduate Assistant at the Faculty of Education, Gombe State University, described the examination as important for all teachers, irrespective of their level of teaching.

Mr Mayere said that TRCN certification demonstrated a teacher’s professional competence and qualification to practise in educational institutions.

He added that he was adequately prepared for the examination and expressed confidence in the computer-based format.

Another candidate, Hannah Omolade, a teacher at Redeemer’s Academy, described the examination as smooth and straightforward.

Ms Omolade said she arrived at examination centre before 7:00 a.m. and completed the computer-based test within the allotted 60 minutes.

She attributed her positive experience to prior practice, adding that candidates familiar with computer-based examinations would encounter little or no difficulty.

(NAN)