By Adeola Kunle
The Federal Government has designated the National Teachers’ Institute (NTI), Kaduna, as the coordinating institution for the Accelerated Teacher Professionalisation Pathway (ATPP), a major initiative aimed at helping serving teachers without professional teaching qualifications obtain recognised credentials.
The initiative, introduced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, CON, is being implemented under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Education as part of the Federal Government’s broader education reform agenda.
The ATPP is designed to address a longstanding challenge in Nigeria’s basic education system, particularly the presence of teachers who have been working in classrooms without the professional qualifications required for teaching.
Many of these teachers are also outside the licensing framework of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), making it difficult to bring them fully within the professional standards and regulatory framework established for the teaching profession.
Under the new arrangement, NTI, one of the country’s largest teacher-training institutions, will serve as the Coordinating Secretariat for the programme.
The institute will work with the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), National Universities Commission (NUC), and other relevant institutions, alongside the Federal Ministry of Education.
Professionalisation without disrupting classrooms
The ATPP is structured to close existing qualification gaps without forcing serving teachers out of the classroom.
Rather than phasing out teachers who currently lack professional teaching qualifications, the programme seeks to provide them with a structured opportunity to acquire the necessary professional competencies and qualifications while remaining in service.
The pathway will operate through two blended routes.
The Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) will be available to serving teachers who possess university degrees in disciplines other than education, while the Professional Diploma in Education (PDE) will cater for serving teachers entering through the National Diploma cadre.
Both routes will combine self-paced digital learning with facilitated virtual sessions, structured assessment points and supervised teaching practice.
A key feature of the programme is that teaching practice will be assessed within the teachers’ actual schools rather than through simulated or off-site centres.
As the Coordinating Secretariat, NTI will oversee curriculum coordination, content management and quality assurance, working in collaboration with UBEC and the ATPP Steering Committee.
Academic preparations substantially completed
Preparations for the commencement of the programme have progressed significantly, with the academic component substantially completed.
Curriculum frameworks for both the PGDE and PDE pathways have been reviewed, validated and finalised.
Module development has also been undertaken by a national panel of about 40 content experts drawn from universities, colleges of education and relevant mandate agencies, including NTI, TRCN, NSSEC, UBEC and NERDC.
The programme’s implementation architecture has equally been mapped across the federal, state and local government levels.
The remaining areas of work include finalising the digital curriculum delivery process, strengthening the teaching practice component and completing engagements with participating partner institutions.
Blended learning model
The ATPP has been designed as a blended programme, combining digital and physical learning components to accommodate the realities of serving teachers.
The blended approach is considered essential to the programme rather than simply an alternative delivery option.
Each module will operate through a repeating cycle involving four components designed to ensure that teachers do not progress solely on the basis of digital learning.
The model is intended to combine learning, interaction, assessment and practical application, thereby connecting what teachers learn with what they do in their classrooms.
Six-month programme
The ATPP will run for six months, comprising four months of intensive instruction and two months of supervised teaching practice.
The teaching practice component is regarded as a critical element of the programme because it will provide evidence of whether the training translates into improved classroom practice rather than merely resulting in the acquisition of additional documentation or qualifications.
The practicum will be built around three major requirements: a structured teaching practice arrangement, a defined mentor and supervisor protocol, and documented evidence of classroom practice.
Such evidence will include practice lessons, pupils’ work and learning materials, as well as supervisor sign-offs, with the records maintained as part of each candidate’s programme documentation.
Through the pathway, the Federal Government seeks to establish a credible, affordable and time-bound mechanism for serving teachers without professional teaching qualifications to acquire TRCN-recognised professional qualifications.
250,000 teachers targeted
The media and communication strategy for the ATPP was considered by a Sub-Committee on Media and Communication chaired by the Executive Secretary of the National Senior Secondary Education Commission, Dr. Iyela Ajayi.
The National Teachers’ Institute was represented at the deliberations by its Head of Public Relations and Protocol, Mal. Yusha’u Ahmed.
The Federal Government expects the programme to engage approximately 250,000 Nigerian teachers.
The ATPP is scheduled for formal launch in October 2026, marking the commencement of a structured national effort to strengthen teacher professionalism and address qualification gaps within the education system.
Adeola Kunle
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