The Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr Hamid Bobboyi, has said Nigeria is experiencing a severe learning crisis that requires immediate action to address.
Bobboyi stated this at a two-day stakeholders “Dialogue on Reading Initiative in the UBE Programme and the Use of Mother Tongue/Language of Immediate Environment as Medium of Instruction,” in Abuja.
He noted that if the learning crisis is not immediately addressed, it would hinder Nigeria from achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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The UBEC boss, who cited a report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, said approximately three out of four children of basic education age, six to 14 years, in Nigeria cannot read a text with understanding, or solve simple mathematics problems.
He, therefore, urged stakeholders at the dialogue to frankly discuss and come up with actionable steps that will not only help UBEC but all stakeholders in ameliorating the situation.
Bobboyi lamented that despite several interventions by the federal government, state governments, and International Development Partners to address the endemic issue, the challenge remains.
“Several factors, such as lack of access to instructional materials, especially on the language of the immediate environment, poor teaching quality, insufficient parental guidance and lackadaisical attitude of States towards implementing the language policy on the use of mother tongue/ language of immediate environment as medium of instruction in the lower classes in Basic Education, are responsible for this.
“It should be stated that fundamental learning is critical to the development of productive citizenship, sustainable development, national cohesion, as well as peace and prosperity. The call for dialogue on these important issues cannot therefore be overemphasized,” he said.
He noted that UBEC is concerned about the learning crisis adding that one of its strategies to confront the situation is harvesting ideas from stakeholders and using them to prepare roadmaps for turning things around.
In a keynote address, the Executive Secretary of Nigeria Educational Research and Development Council, NERDC, Prof Ismail Junaidu, called for the implementation of the National Language Policy.
Junaidu disclosed that the policy, which prescribes the use of mother tongue or language of immediate environment as medium of instruction in basic schools was approved in 2022 and allows the use of mother tongue to teach even up to primary six.
While stating that no language should be left out, he said over 60 language autography, or writing systems, have been developed, adding that after developing their autography, the curriculum for teaching the language needs to be developed also for implementation.
He called on communities as custodians of the culture to step in and complement the effort of government, adding that the council was ready to provide technical assistance to all languages.