Learners Castle School

69th National Council on Education Meeting
During the first term 2025/2026 midterm, Monday, 3rd November to Thursday, 6th November 2025, the 69th National Council on Education (NCE) meeting was at the International Event Centre (Dome), Akure, Ondo State, and it was presided over by the Honourable Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa CON.

The deliberation was on “Quality Education Data and Professionalisation of Teaching: Tools for Enhanced National Development"

The communique indicates that the Minister of Education is well informed about the state of education in our dear country, Nigeria.

Before I share my ultimate concern, let me share some of the beautiful perspectives of the meeting.

The council emphasised the ongoing reform of the education sector on prioritising improvement in quality assurance, access, and equity in basic education. It renewed my hope on the minister and his team. Basic education deserves that priority if we are serious about the future of our dear nation.

The need for improved ECCDE (Early Child Care Development and Education) in the informal (nontraditional) sectors, religious centres, hospitals, motor parks, markets, and so on.

The isolated ECCDE in schools alone has created a significant gap in childcare knowledge between the populace and the school. This isolated knowledge has caused many children to be victims of poor parenting and childcare. Where about 90% of brain development is achieved during the phase of preschool education at age (years 0-5), children exposed to the wrong human and material environment will accept their experience as the norm and grow up to manifest what we see many adults manifest in our society today.

While we are considering this, I humbly appeal to the Minister of Education to recommend mandatory annual CPD (Continuous Professional Development) for every teacher who attends to children in preschool and lower basic education (age 0-8). Especially with the compelling TRCN registration for teachers teaching in our schools from 2026, which was also discussed at the meeting.

Many teachers with academic or professional qualifications still require appropriate teaching practice skills. I have been teaching and leading in the ECCDE, Lower, and Middle Basic Education for 15 years, and the need for mandatory annual CPD on our teaching practices will contribute positively to how the science and art of education can achieve the following education goals in Nigeria as stated in our National Policy on Education:

1. “Development of the individual into a morally sound, patriotic and effective citizen;

2. Total integration of the individual into the immediate community, Nigerian society, and the world;

3. Provision of equal access to qualitative educational opportunities for all citizens at all levels of education, within and outside the formal school system;

4. Inculcation of national consciousness, values, and national unity; and

5. Development of appropriate skills, mental, physical, and social abilities, and competencies to empower the individual to live in and contribute positively to society."

Another six SPECIFIC GOALS of being educated in Nigeria:

A. “Ensure and sustain unfettered access and equity to education for the total development of the individual;

B. Ensure the quality of education delivery at all levels;

C. Promote functional education for skill acquisition, job creation, and poverty reduction;

D. Ensure periodic review, effectiveness, and relevance of the curriculum at all levels to meet the needs of society and the world of work;

E. collaborate with development partners, the private sector, non-governmental organizations, and local communities to support and fuel education; and

F. promote information technology capacity at all levels.”

Some other areas discussed that can help us achieve our national goals are:

1- Drug abuse,

2- Examination Malpractices,

3- TRCN is mandatory for teachers' registration,

4- Data on Teachers in Public and Private Schools,

5- French language as an international language in our schools.

6- Teachers’ Competency in inclusive education

7- Framework for National Education Quality Assurance Policy (NEQAP)

8- Digital Training for Master Trainers who will cascade digital training to other teachers

9- Domestication of guidelines and workforce.

I am especially grateful for the discussion of ECCDE, Examination Malpractices, Teachers’ Competency in Inclusive Education, and French Language at the meeting.

Here is my major concern about the ongoing education reforms of our dear Minister of Education, who has demonstrated his political-will to see that Nigeria’s economy and the overall well-being of our nation is achieved through education: the policies being introduced are not allowed to sink into the system before another one is presented for implementation.

For example, Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba, and Arabic language are yet to be uploaded in the 2025 revised Basic Education Curriculum uploaded to NERDC's website as of the time of writing this review (Sunday 16th November, 2025).

The recent policy that instils English as the language of instruction in Nigeria is a welcome development. Knowing the peculiarities of a multilingual and multicultural society like ours, the offering of these languages in schools would have maintained and nurtured the cultural identities of our children in the multicultural and global society we have all found ourselves.

I appeal to the minister to help us see that his team addresses this concern. When we are making a new policy, the alternative should be up and running simultaneously or before changing the existing policy. This hastiness will only put school stakeholders like school managers, teachers and others under avoidable stress and pressure without achieving the goals of the policy.

God bless Nigeria.

Together, we will achieve more.

Victor Ogunbekun

The presentation of our financial reward to the Most Outstanding Pupil of 2024/2025 Academic Session at our End of the Session's Event on Friday 18th July, 2025.

We wish you a more rewarding journey as you continue your basic education in junior secondary school.

Congratulations to you.

We celebrate with all our Islam family members, today.

We pray that the grace of God shall be in abundance for all of us. Amin.

Happy Eid-ul-Mawlid!

Big shout out to our newest top fans! Edun Omolola Janet Odunoye

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Victor Ogunbekun's Professional Biography.