Re-engaging retired teachers into technical schools will aid knowledge transfer – V-C

Bilkis Lafiaji-Okuneye, the Vice-Chancellor, Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), said the Federal Government’s measure to re-engage retired technical teachers to teach in the nation’s technical institutions would boost teaching and learning of skills needed to shore up skills acquisition in the society.

Lafiaji-Okunneye gave the thumps-up in an interview with our correspondent in Lagos on Friday.

The Federal Government recently through a memo released by the Federal Ministry of Education, indicated measure to re-engage retired technical teachers as Internal Quality Assurance Manager (IQAM) and Senior Technical Tutor (STT) to up-scale teaching in new Technical Vocational Education Training (TVET) initiative across institutions.

The policy to drive skills acquisition and transfer aimed to extract skills from the veterans to the younger generation, make them self-employed and to boost industrialisation.

The vice-chancellor, therefore, called for review of the technical teaching curriculum of technical institutions to foster practical knowledge of trades such as electrical wiring, mental fabrication, auto mechanic, woodwork, carpentry and joinery, air conditioner and refrigerator repair and others.

She regretted that the crop of teachers that teach potential technical teachers in many institutions are theory-oriented because of the curriculum they passed through and could not engage students in practical experiences that would stand them out.

According to her, re-engagement of the veterans will enable those with the needed knowledge and skills transfer such to the younger generation for sustainability.

She added that “government must let people know that it is not only through white collar jobs that one can earn a living, but also through skills acquisition geared towards societal problems’ solving.

“If we must advance and measure up to global reckoning, technical know-how of the younger generation must be prioritised in our institutions.

“It will be of national pride to see products of our technical institutions carry out welding jobs, repair of refrigerators and others, as such will boost industry establishments and self employment.”

She said that institutions that run technical education must have large aspects of programmes embedded in practical training of students to enable them to acquire the needed skills.