Corona i-Teach: Remodeling the teaching profession
Recent findings have revealed that very few youths desire to become professional teachers, yet the teaching profession is one that moulds society.
There have been persistent calls by concerned Nigerian for the rescue of the teaching profession from ignominy and neglect.While government has largely been blamed for the neglect of teachers colleges and colleges of education, there is also the need for private institutions to champion this fight to bring back glamour to the teaching profession and make it more attractive to the younger generation.
One of such laudable steps deployed by the private sector towards addressing this identified lapses in this noble profession is the one being championed by Corona Teachers College.
Since 2007 the Corona Teachers’ College has been in the vanguard of providing quality training for teachers and school administrators in line with the colleges’ goal of transforming the education sector and make teaching an attractive career option.
As proponents of societal growth through the education of teachers, the College has strategically mapped out plans to educate teachers on best practices and equip them with the skills required to excel in classroom practice.
The Corona Teachers’ College objective from inception has been to pursue professional and academic excellence and add value to Nigerian teachers by improving their teaching skills, thus, enhancing their proficiency.
By designing a number of short term courses that runs through the academic year, the College has over the years being able to provide a platform for the continuous professional development of teachers through practical, stimulating and thought provoking sessions handled by experienced educationists and administrators.
Backed by a vision to be the best provider of post initial teacher training education in Nigeria, with quality and standards comparable to the best training institutions worldwide, the College introduced the Corona i-Teach programme which aims to empower and equip young graduates for 21st century classroom practice, irrespective of their initial academic discipline.
The Corona i-teach programme involves a 4 month wide spectrum core teacher and personal development training programme which will utilise various forms of training methodologies useful for adult learning and engagement.
Olufunto Igun, Executive Director, Corona Schools’ Trust Council, states that “Corona i-Teach Programme is a 21st century teacher development and recruitment programme which is intended to attract our nation’s most promising best graduates and future leaders into the teaching profession.”
Igun disclosed that a significant area that continues to pose a serious challenge to schools is the dearth of trained, technically qualified teachers adding that experience shows that the best graduates are not in the teaching profession where they should belong.
“We feel strongly that it is critical that we change this and attract these talents with the attractiveness of teaching as a viable, profitable and noble career,” she said
She further revealed that the objectives of the programme are to re-establish the dignity of the teaching profession in Nigeria by attracting qualified trainable youth who will be ready to impact students’ academic achievement in a positive way; re-skilling graduate entrants into the profession, equipping them with higher order skills for an effective teaching and learning process.
“Another objective of setting up this Corona i-teach programmes is to institute a teacher pipeline for the future and ensure maintenance of standards of the Trust Council and education in Nigeria and to draw into the teaching profession dynamic individuals well prepared with workplace and professional values to impact our children and ultimately the nation”. She said.
On her part, Ifueko Omowunmi, director, Corona Teachers College, says the I-Teach programmes exposes trainees to a four month intensive grooming aims at discovering the innate their talent and sharpening same for better output.
“This 21st century teacher development programme intends to attract our nation’s most promising future leaders into the teaching profession, enhance the improvement of teaching standards through the encouragement of in-service training programmes”. She said.
KELECHI EWUZIE