Project – Reason for shortage of qualified teacher in primary and secondary school. A Study of five selected Primary and Secondary Schools in District IV, Lagos

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the Study

Education is widely recognized as a fundamental instrument for individual development, social transformation and national development, and the teacher remains one of the most important human resources through which educational objectives are translated into classroom practice. The quality of teachers available to a school system influences the extent to which learners receive appropriate instruction, guidance, assessment and support. UNESCO’s Global Report on Teachers emphasizes that teacher availability, qualification, preparation, recruitment, deployment and retention are central to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 on inclusive and equitable quality education. The report projects that approximately 44 million additional primary and secondary teachers will be required globally by 2030, with sub-Saharan Africa accounting for a substantial proportion of the projected need (UNESCO, 2024).

In Nigeria, the challenge of teacher supply is particularly important because the country has a large and growing school-age population and continues to experience substantial gaps in access to quality education. The 2024 Nigeria Situation Analysis by UNICEF identifies teacher shortages, inadequate teacher training, overcrowded classrooms and insufficient education financing among the major challenges confronting the education sector. The report indicates that Nigeria requires additional qualified teachers to meet existing basic-education needs and notes significant differences between prescribed and actual teacher-pupil ratios. For primary education, the national policy benchmark is 1:35, whereas available evidence cited by UNICEF indicates considerably higher ratios in many public primary schools. These conditions place pressure on existing teachers and may reduce the amount of individual attention available to learners (UNICEF, 2024).

The issue is not merely the numerical shortage of teachers but also the shortage of qualified and professionally prepared teachers. In Nigeria, the National Policy on Education identifies the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) as the minimum qualification for entry into the teaching profession, while the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN) regulates teacher registration, licensing and professional standards. Current TRCN requirements recognize NCE and other approved professional qualifications as routes into the profession, while teachers are required to be registered and licensed to practise. Consequently, a school may have teachers physically present but still experience a shortage of qualified personnel if some teachers lack the required professional preparation, registration or relevant subject competence (Federal Ministry of Education [FME], 2014; TRCN, 2026).

Available national evidence demonstrates the seriousness of the qualification dimension of the problem. The World Bank’s analysis of Nigeria’s basic education system reported that, in 2022, about 20% of teaching staff in primary education lacked the required formal qualifications, while the corresponding proportion in junior secondary education was substantially higher. The report also identified inadequate teacher supply, weak teacher management, insufficient financing and governance challenges as factors affecting the quality of basic education. This means that teacher shortage should be understood not only in terms of the number of vacancies but also in relation to whether available teachers possess the professional qualifications, subject knowledge and pedagogical skills required for effective classroom instruction (World Bank, 2024).

Teacher recruitment, retention, deployment and professional development are therefore important dimensions of the problem. UNESCO identifies unattractive salaries, difficult working conditions, inadequate support and uneven teacher deployment as factors associated with teacher shortages globally. In Nigeria, the Teachers Registration Council’s career-path policy emphasizes that recruitment should be needs-based and competency-based and should consider the number of vacancies, subjects, specialization and other characteristics of teacher demand. UNICEF has similarly emphasized the importance of continuous professional development because weaknesses in teacher preparation and limited opportunities for professional learning can constrain teachers’ capacity to respond effectively to classroom needs (UNESCO, 2024; TRCN, 2024; UNICEF, 2025).

The situation has particular relevance to Lagos State because of the size and complexity of its education system. Data from the Federal Ministry of Education’s 2024/2025 Annual School Census indicate that Lagos State had more than two million learners across the reported education system and a learner-teacher ratio of 15.5 at the aggregate state level. However, the same data show a learner-classroom ratio of 46.4, above the UBE benchmark of 35, indicating that teacher availability alone does not remove the broader capacity pressures confronting schools. In addition, the Lagos State Teaching Service Commission has historically identified teacher shortages as a concern in public post-primary schools and has undertaken recruitment and training initiatives to address workforce needs. These developments demonstrate that teacher manpower remains an important educational planning issue in Lagos State (Federal Ministry of Education, 2026; Lagos State Teaching Service Commission [TESCOM], 2023).

Education District IV is particularly relevant for a localized investigation of teacher availability because it constitutes one of the six administrative education districts of Lagos State. Available Lagos education records identify Education District IV with the Apapa, Lagos Mainland and Surulere areas. The district therefore covers a mixture of densely populated urban communities and established residential and commercial environments in which public schools serve substantial numbers of learners. Lagos State Government continues to emphasize teacher recruitment, workforce planning and professional development as part of education-sector management. Against this background, examining the reasons for shortages of qualified teachers in five selected primary schools within Education District IV can provide school-level evidence concerning recruitment, qualification, retention, workload, remuneration, professional development and deployment issues that may not be sufficiently visible in aggregate state statistics (Lagos State Government, 2017; Lagos State Government, 2025).

The problem of teacher shortage has direct implications for teaching and learning because teachers are responsible for translating curriculum objectives into classroom experiences. The 2022 National Assessment of Learning Achievement in Basic Education, conducted by UBEC in collaboration with UNICEF, assessed learners across primary and junior secondary schools throughout Nigeria and highlighted the importance of examining the conditions under which learning takes place. UNICEF also reports that weak teacher capacity and inadequate professional development contribute to Nigeria’s learning crisis. Therefore, identifying why schools may experience shortages of qualified teachers is important not only for filling vacancies but also for understanding how recruitment practices, professional qualifications, teacher motivation, workload and deployment affect the capacity of schools to provide effective instruction (UBEC & UNICEF, 2025; UNICEF, 2025).

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The availability of qualified teachers is essential for effective teaching and learning, yet Nigeria continues to experience challenges relating to both the quantity and quality of its teaching workforce. National evidence indicates that the country requires additional qualified teachers while significant proportions of teachers at some levels lack required formal qualifications. UNICEF reports that Nigeria has a serious shortage of teachers and estimates that an additional 194,876 qualified teachers are required to address existing gaps in basic education. The World Bank has similarly reported substantial qualification gaps among teachers in primary and junior secondary education (UNICEF, 2024; World Bank, 2024).

A second problem concerns the factors responsible for the shortage. Teacher shortages may arise from inadequate recruitment relative to enrolment growth, retirement, resignation, migration to other occupations, unattractive working conditions, limited professional development and uneven deployment. UNESCO identifies teacher retention, remuneration, working conditions and unequal deployment as important dimensions of the global teacher-shortage problem. In Nigeria, the TRCN career-path policy specifically recognizes the need for needs-based recruitment and deployment based on vacancies, subject specialization and other workforce requirements. However, there remains a need for localized evidence showing how these factors operate within individual school environments (UNESCO, 2024; TRCN, 2024).

The problem is also relevant to Lagos State despite its relatively strong educational infrastructure and comparatively favourable aggregate teacher-pupil indicators. The Federal Ministry of Education’s 2024/2025 data show that Lagos had approximately 2.04 million learners and a learner-teacher ratio of 15.5 at the aggregate level, but the learner-classroom ratio remained above the UBE standard. Furthermore, Lagos TESCOM has previously stated that addressing an acute shortage of teachers was one of its priorities and has undertaken recruitment and teacher-training programmes. These facts suggest that statewide averages may conceal differences between schools, locations, subjects and qualification profiles. Consequently, school-level investigation is necessary to understand the actual factors associated with teacher shortages in particular communities (Federal Ministry of Education, 2026; TESCOM, 2023).

Within Education District IV, which covers Apapa, Lagos Mainland and Surulere, there is therefore a need to investigate the reasons why some primary schools may experience shortages of qualified teachers. Without adequate information on the specific contribution of recruitment practices, teacher qualification, remuneration, workload, professional development, retention and deployment, interventions may address the symptoms rather than the underlying causes. The absence of sufficiently localized evidence also makes it difficult for school administrators and education authorities to determine whether teacher shortages are primarily numerical, qualification-related, distributional or connected to retention and working conditions. The present study consequently examines the reasons for the shortage of qualified teachers through a study of five selected primary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State, with the intention of generating evidence relevant to teacher recruitment, deployment, professional development and retention (Lagos State Government, 2025; TRCN, 2024; UNICEF, 2024).

1.3 Purpose of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the reasons for the shortage of qualified teachers in primary and secondary schools, with particular reference to five selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State.

Specifically, the study seeks to:

1. Examine the extent to which inadequate recruitment and deployment contribute to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State.
2. Determine the extent to which remuneration, welfare and working conditions contribute to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State.
3. Examine the influence of workload, teacher attrition and retention challenges on the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State.
4. Assess the extent to which inadequate professional development and opportunities for career advancement contribute to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State.

1.4 Research Questions

The following research questions will guide the study:

1. To what extent do inadequate recruitment and deployment contribute to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State?
2. To what extent do remuneration, welfare and working conditions contribute to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State?
3. To what extent do workload, teacher attrition and retention challenges contribute to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State?
4. To what extent do inadequate professional development and opportunities for career advancement contribute to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State?

1.5 Research Hypothesis

The following null hypothesis will be tested at 0.05 level of significance:

H₀: There is no significant relationship between working conditions and the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State.

1.6 Significance of the Study

The study will be significant to the Lagos State Government, particularly the Ministry of Education, Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board, Lagos State Teaching Service Commission and other agencies responsible for teacher recruitment, deployment and management. The findings may provide useful evidence on factors contributing to shortages of qualified teachers in primary and secondary schools and may assist educational authorities in developing appropriate strategies for teacher recruitment, deployment and retention.

The study will also be significant to school administrators and head teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools. Understanding the factors associated with shortages of qualified teachers may help school administrators identify challenges relating to recruitment, workload, remuneration, welfare, working conditions, professional development and staff retention. Such knowledge may assist administrators in improving staff management and creating a more supportive environment for qualified teachers.

The study will benefit teachers by drawing attention to the professional and workplace conditions that may influence teacher availability and retention. Issues relating to remuneration, workload, welfare, professional development and career advancement are important considerations in understanding why qualified teachers may leave schools or the teaching profession. The findings may therefore contribute to discussions on policies and practices that promote teacher satisfaction and retention.

The study will be useful to educational planners and policymakers because teacher shortages may differ across schools, education levels and geographical areas. By examining five selected primary and secondary schools, the study may provide localized evidence that complements broader state and national education statistics. The findings may assist policymakers in distinguishing between numerical shortages, shortages of professionally qualified personnel and problems associated with the distribution and retention of teachers.

The study will also be useful to educational researchers and students of Educational Administration and Planning. It will provide empirical information that may serve as a reference for further research on teacher shortages, teacher recruitment, teacher retention, professional qualifications, working conditions, workforce planning and educational resource management in Lagos State and Nigeria.

The study may further benefit parents and learners because the availability of adequate numbers of qualified teachers is important for effective teaching and learning. A better understanding of the factors responsible for teacher shortages may contribute to measures aimed at ensuring that learners in both primary and secondary schools have access to appropriately qualified teachers.

Finally, the study will be useful to the general public and the wider education community because teacher shortages are not only an institutional concern but also an issue that affects the quality and effectiveness of the education system. Identifying the factors responsible for shortages of qualified teachers may contribute to informed discussions and evidence-based interventions for improving educational service delivery.

1.7 Scope of the Study

The study focuses on the reasons for the shortage of qualified teachers in primary and secondary schools, with its empirical investigation limited to five selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV, Lagos State.

The study will examine four major areas:

• recruitment and deployment of qualified teachers;
• remuneration, welfare and working conditions;
• workload, teacher attrition and retention; and
• professional development and career advancement opportunities.

Geographically, the study is limited to Education District IV of Lagos State, which comprises the Apapa, Lagos Mainland and Surulere areas. The empirical study will involve five selected schools comprising both primary and secondary schools within the district. The selection of five schools is intended to provide a manageable scope for investigating the factors associated with shortages of qualified teachers at the school level.

The study is also limited in terms of its respondents and content. The respondents will be drawn from relevant personnel in the selected schools, such as teachers and school administrators, as appropriate to the research design. The study will focus specifically on factors associated with the shortage of qualified teachers rather than attempting to examine every challenge confronting the Nigerian education system.

In terms of content, the study concentrates on recruitment and deployment, remuneration and working conditions, workload and teacher retention, and professional development and career advancement. These areas are examined as possible factors contributing to the shortage of qualified teachers in the selected primary and secondary schools.

Although the study considers both primary and secondary education, it is not intended to represent every primary and secondary school in Lagos State. Its findings will specifically relate to the five selected primary and secondary schools in Education District IV and may provide a basis for understanding similar teacher-shortage issues in comparable school settings.

1.8 Operational Definition of Terms

Qualified Teacher: A person who possesses the prescribed academic and professional teaching qualification required for employment at a particular level of education and who meets the applicable professional requirements for teaching. In Nigeria, the Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) is recognized as the minimum qualification for entry into the teaching profession, subject to applicable professional requirements (FME, 2014; TRCN, 2026).

Teacher Shortage: A situation in which the number of teachers available in a school is insufficient to meet the school’s instructional and staffing requirements or where there is an inadequate supply of teachers with the required professional qualifications.

Shortage of Qualified Teachers: A situation in which a school does not have a sufficient number of teachers who possess the required academic, professional and/or subject-specific qualifications to adequately meet its teaching and learning needs.

Teacher Recruitment: The process through which educational authorities or school management identify, attract, select and appoint individuals who meet established academic and professional requirements for teaching positions.

Teacher Deployment: The allocation and placement of teachers across schools, classes, subjects and education levels according to identified staffing needs.

Teacher Retention: The ability of a school or education system to retain qualified teachers in active teaching service over a period of time rather than losing them through resignation, retirement, transfer, migration or movement into other occupations.

Teacher Attrition: The loss or departure of teachers from a school or the teaching profession as a result of resignation, retirement, transfer, migration, career change or other forms of exit.

Professional Development: Formal and informal learning activities undertaken by teachers to improve their subject knowledge, pedagogical skills, professional competencies and effectiveness throughout their teaching careers.

Working Conditions: The physical, professional, organizational and social circumstances under which teachers perform their duties. These may include workload, class size, availability of teaching resources, school facilities, leadership support, job security and the general school environment.

Remuneration: The salary, allowances, incentives and other financial benefits provided to teachers in return for their professional services.

Teacher Workload: The amount and range of professional duties assigned to teachers, including classroom teaching, lesson preparation, assessment, record keeping, extracurricular activities, administrative responsibilities and other school-related tasks.

Career Advancement: Opportunities available to teachers to progress professionally through promotion, additional qualifications, increased responsibilities, leadership positions, specialized training or other forms of professional progression.

Education District IV: One of the administrative education districts of Lagos State responsible for education administration and management within the areas covered by the district, including Apapa, Lagos Mainland and Surulere.

Primary School: An educational institution that provides formal education at the primary level, following the foundational stage of the Nigerian education system.

Secondary School: An educational institution that provides education after the primary level and includes junior and/or senior secondary education within the Nigerian education structure.

Primary and Secondary Schools: For the purpose of this study, this refers specifically to the selected primary and secondary schools from which the five schools included in the study will be drawn within Education District IV, Lagos State.

Project – Reason for shortage of qualified teacher in primary and secondary school. A Study of five selected Primary and Secondary Schools in District IV, Lagos