Provost Advocates Degree-awarding Status for Colleges of Education

Funmi Ogundare

The Provost, Federal College of Education (Technical), Akoka, Lagos, Dr Ademola Azeez, has called on the federal government to allow education colleges to award NCE and degrees.

Azeez made the appeal recently at the college’s 2020/2021 matriculation ceremony, where a total of 727 candidates were admitted into its various programmes.

He said colleges of education should be allowed to run degree programmes to the PhD level.

“For instance, for those who want to do teacher education, they could do a three-year programme and bag NCE certificate, and for their degree programmes, they will spend two years,” explained Azeez. “As a college of education, we are not given the autonomy to award degree, but it is already being tackled by the amendment act that established colleges of education. In the act, we have proposed that we should be allowed to run dual-mode, which means we will run both NCE and degree programmes. We have what it takes as a college.”

The provost added that “we have presented our case” to the federal ministry of education.

“It is a disservice to the nation to allow colleges of education of our type established in 1967 to be affiliated to the University of Benin and nothing else,” he argued. “We have enough PhD holders here just like in the university. We also have the best facilities here. We discovered that most private universities that the federal government registered do not have such facilities that we have.”

Azeez also decried the institution’s low student enrollment rate, saying that many admission seekers will consider universities before colleges of education.

“It is when they are unable to secure such that they now think of coming into colleges of education. It has been an annual problem being faced by most colleges of education in Nigeria,” added th college provost. “The admission now is getting very competitive, and many institutions; federal and private, are springing up.”

He said many education colleges in Nigeria wee sourcing students from the same society, adding that his college is not a conventional one where courses like English, Yoruba, Islamic and Religious Studies are run.

“The same requirement needed in the universities to run science, technology and engineering is also used for colleges of education. That is what is affecting the intake,” Azeez pointed out.

He admonished the students to exhibit discipline, loyalty, honesty and good character at all times during their stay in the college.

“It is therefore advised that you combine both academic and moral excellence throughout your stay as a student in the college,” said the provost. “You should refrain from acts contrary to rules and regulations of the college in order not to jeopardise the realisation of your life ambitions.”