NEWS LEVERAGE

Shehu Sani, the former Senator representing Kaduna Central, has expressed his opposition to the proposed abolishment of the 6-3-3-4 education system. He urged the federal government to consider the opinions of informed stakeholders in the discussion.

Reports on Friday indicated that the federal government has called on the National Council on Education (NCE) to eliminate Junior Secondary Schools (JSS) and Senior Secondary Schools in favour of a mandatory 12 years of continuous basic education in the country.

This initiative was announced by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, during the extraordinary National Council on Education meeting held in Abuja on Thursday, February 6, 2025. The proposed change would establish a 12-4 model of education in Nigeria.

In his remarks, the human rights activist emphasized the importance of consulting teachers, student unions, and other examination bodies before making such a significant change to the educational system, which has long been a foundation for Nigeria.

He stated, “The Government should not just abolish the 6-3–3-4 education system by fiat without listening to enlightened views from Teachers Unions,  Students Unions, education experts, School administrators, Parents bodies, Academics and examinations bodies. The National Assembly should hold a public debate on this first.”

However, in an interview with THISDAY on Friday, Minister of Education Dr Tunji Alausa acknowledged that while a shift to a 12-year uninterrupted basic education model is being considered, no final decision has been reached yet.

“We haven’t even reached the implementation phase. The National Council of Education, which is the highest decision-making body for education policies, must first approve any changes,” he explained.

The Minister also requested the NCE’s approval to officially establish 16 years as the minimum entry age for the country’s tertiary institutions.