Return of History to basic education
IF for nothing else, the eight-year tenure of renowned journalist, Adamu Adamu as the Minister of Education, will be positively remembered as the era that restored History as subject in the curriculum of the Nigerian educational system. As part of plans to put the scheme in place, the Minister partnered the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council, NERDC, and the Universal Basic Education Commission, UBEC, to commence the training of 3,700 history teachers selected from the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja. Each state is contributing 100 trainees to this pilot scheme. History was discontinued in schools during the tenure of Aisha Jibril Dukku as Minister of Education under the late President Umaru Yar'Adua's regime in 2009. Some of the reasons officially given were: history graduates had fewer job openings; there was a lack of student interest in the subject; and consequently, fewer history graduates were available to teach the subject. Howe...