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Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org
ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online)
Vol.5, No.31, 2014
20
A Study on Quantity and Quality of Mathematics Teachers in
Central Plateau State, Nigeria: Implications for National
Development in Nigeria
Thomas D. Bot (Ph.D)1*
Mbwas Luka Caleb2
1.Department of Science and Technology Education, Faculty of Education, University of Jos, Jos, Plateau State
Nigeria
2.Department of General Studies in Education, Federal College of Education, Pankshin, Plateau State, Nigeria
*Email:tomasbot@gmail.com
Abstract
This study examined and provided insight into the quality and quantity of mathematics teachers in secondary
schools in central Plateau state, Nigeria, using descriptive survey research design.The sample consisted of 83
mathematics teachers and 19,323 students from 58 secondary schools located in three geographical areas of
Mangu, Pankshin and Kanam. The sample was selected using simple random and purposive sampling techniques.
For this reason, all the mathematics teachers and students from the 58 secondary schools in the three areas were
selected. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire tagged QQMT. This was developed based on the
quantity of mathematics teachers, qualifications, teaching experience, gender and enrollment of students in
secondary schools in the three areas. The QQMT was validated by experts. Observer agreement method was
used to find the reliability. The inter-rater reliability coefficient was 85%. The data collected was analyzed using
descriptive statistics. The findings from the study revealed that mathematics teachers from the study areas
possess different qualifications ranging from NCE, B.Ed., B.Sc.(Ed.), B.Sc. to M.Ed. degrees. Some schools
have no mathematics teachers, many have one each and a few have between 2-4 teachers. Majority of the
teachers have NCE certificates while only one has M.Ed. degree in mathematics. Also, out of the 83 teachers, 24
have less than 5 years teaching experience, 27 have between 5-10 years and 32 have more than 10 years teaching
experience. The average teacher/student ratio was 1:233. The implications of the study for national development
in Nigeria were discussed. Among other things, it was recommended that the government should employ more
qualified mathematics teachers and those serving but are not qualified should go for further studies to acquire
higher teaching qualifications.
Keywords: Mathematics Education, Performance, Secondary School, Teachers, Quality, Quantity
1. Introduction
One of the causes of poor performance of students in mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria and
elsewhere in the world is poor quality and quantity of teachers (Ingersoll & Perda, 2009). Quality has to do with
category of teachers that have been trained formally for the task of teaching mathematics. In Nigeria, trained
teachers for the secondary school level are supposed to have a minimum of the Bachelor of Science Education
(B.Sc. (Ed.)) or Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) degrees before they are qualified to teach any subject including
mathematics. Usually, the training of the prospective teachers take place in recognized tertiary institutions like
the Colleges of Education (COE), Universities and Institutes of Education (IOE) in Nigerian universities.
Quantity represents the total number of qualified teachers who are employed to teach mathematics in the
secondary school in Nigeria.
The quality and quantity of mathematics teachers in the secondary school determines to a large extent
how successful students learn, understand and perform in mathematics. This is because mathematics teachers
that are qualified and employed in the right quantity are supposed to teach effectively leading to successful
learning and improved performance for students. But in a situation where the teachers are not qualified, they
cannot teach effectively since they will find the teaching difficult, therefore, this will affect the understanding
and performance of their students in mathematics negatively. Unfortunately, the problem of lack of effective
teaching is affecting Nigerian students because the education system as a whole is said to be faced with many
challenges like acute shortage of qualified teachers, large class-size, archaic facilities and infrastructures and so
on (Ukeje, 1999). The shortage of qualified teachers in Nigeria for example, can be seen from the following
analysis. In 2006, it was reported that Nigeria had a total of 222,238 teachers. From this number, only
97,213(43.7%) were graduates with teaching qualifications, 45,172(20.3%) were graduates without teaching
qualifications, 63,518(28.6%) were holders of Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE), 10,620(4.8%) were
diploma certificate holders and about 27% of the total teaching force were grade II, SSCE and other certificate
holders (FME, 2006). The report further revealed that Nigeria had a total of 14,942 secondary schools with
4,984,560 students. The Gross Intake Rates (GIR) for junior and senior secondary school students were 21% and
23% respectively. According to the FME report, out of the 14,942 secondary schools, 7,562(51%) were public
Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org
ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online)
Vol.5, No.31, 2014
21
schools, 3,624(24%) were private and 3,756(25%) were not public or private. From this information, it means
that on the average there are in Nigeria approximately 334 students, 15 teachers, 6 graduate teachers with
teaching qualifications and teacher/student ratio of 1:55 per secondary school. This means that the average
number of qualified teachers in each secondary school is inadequate with a high teacher/student ratio and gross
intake rates. Also, the number of teachers with NCE certificates still teaching in the secondary schools is high.
This is not normal as it is contrary to the required minimum teaching qualification in Nigeria.
Furthermore, the quality and quantity of teachers affects the performance of students in mathematics if
the teachers are not adequate in number and they are overloaded with too many lesson periods and other
responsibilities in the school. Also, the issue of large class-size does not guarantee effective teaching and
learning of mathematics because it affects the output of teachers in the class. On the contrary, when there is
sufficient quantity of qualified teachers in the school system, the teaching of mathematics will be made more
effective. This will lead to improvement in understanding and performance as well as the development and
fostering of more positive attitudes towards mathematics among students.
Since qualified mathematics teachers in the right quantity are supposed to teach effectively by virtue of
their training, it is important for the government at all levels and other education providers to employ and retain
only the qualified teachers for the purpose of effective mathematics teaching in the secondary school. The
retention is important because it is said to be the antidote to staffing problems (Ingersoll & Perda, 2009). Also, it
will help in improving the performance of students in mathematics significantly. But if the qualified teachers are
not retained and they keep coming in and going out of the teaching profession to greener areas, it will affect the
performance of students in mathematics negatively due to what has been described as the problems of teaching
(Ibraheem & Ogunnusi, 2001). According to the authors, the problems account for about 67% of the failure rates
of students in mathematics while negative attitudes and difficulty of mathematics itself accounts for about 12%
and 21% respectively. This means that if qualified teachers are not retained to ameliorate the effects of the
teaching problems, students will continue to record poor performance in mathematics mainly due to lack of
proper teaching.
Furthermore, since mathematics is important, it is important also to have it taught by sufficient number
of qualified and interested or motivated teachers. The National Policy on Education (FGN, 2004) stated that no
education can rise above the quality of its teachers. This means that if the quality of teachers is poor without
having interest in teaching, the education system will be poor and if the education system is poor, it will result in
poor quality products and this will affect the development of Nigeria. Similarly, the teaching of mathematics
requires qualified teachers that are well experienced, if not, those that are not qualified may engage in practices
that may short-change students like teaching with poorly prepared lessons, avoiding some topics that may appear
difficult for them to teach but are very important for students to learn, making unnecessary computational
mistakes that should be avoided and treating students without respect and so on. These can affect the
performance and interest of students in mathematics. The report of the Chief Examiner (WAEC, 2009) clearly
stated that students have shallow knowledge of mathematics, lack mathematical/manipulative skills and so on
simply because they were exposed to poor teaching. As a result, their performance is low, interest is depressing
and their rate of failure devastating (Obioma, 1990; Agwagah, 2004). Beyond this, students tend to be affected in
their performance in other school subjects like physics and chemistry adversely with poor performance in
mathematics. WAEC (2006) noted that the marks lost by each physics student from poor knowledge of
mathematics account for 50%. Obomanu and Adaramola (2011) stated that the poor knowledge of mathematics
is one of the major problems militating against the success of students in chemistry. These problems can be
resolved if teachers who are interested, qualified, motivated and well experienced in the right quantity are
employed to teach mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria.
As discussed earlier, there is no doubt that the issue of qualified teachers who are employed in the right
quantity among other things is a key element for effective teaching of mathematics. This is supported by many
research findings. For example, it has been found that the depth of the knowledge of mathematics correlates
strongly with the depth of teachers’ mathematical knowledge (Bergeson, 2002), that qualified mathematics
teachers help students to score high marks in mathematics (Bergeson, 2002) and that there exists a strong
correlation between the ability, education and experience of teachers and achievement of students (Greenwald,
Hedges & Lane, 1996). Also, it has been found out that a strong correlation exists between competence/quality
of teachers and students’ performance/achievement in mathematics with the result that teacher
experience/competence is said to be the predictors of students’ performance in many school subjects (Adeyemi,
2008; Fetler, 1999). This means that the more experienced teachers are the better they are able to teach
mathematics effectively.
One of the factors that affect the performance of students in mathematics also is large class-size which
has been highlighted briefly. Class-size is the number of students per teacher in a classroom. It varies from one
school to another and from one country to another (Adeyimi, 2008). In Nigeria, the FGN (2004) recommended
that the teacher/student ratio should be 1:40 in the secondary school but this is not the case because of the
Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org
ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online)
Vol.5, No.31, 2014
22
problem of acute shortage of qualified teachers and large students enrolment such that many schools register up
to 50-100 students and above per class (Ijaiye, 1999). However, class-size needs to be small or normal because it
helps in promoting effective teaching and learning of mathematics. Blatchford (2009) observed that small class-
size makes it easy for teachers to spot problems and give feedback, identify specific needs and gear teaching to
meet them but large classes do not. He found out that pupils in small reading and mathematics classes performed
significantly better than those in regular classes. Yara (2010) found out that the performance of students in large
classes is low (23%) compared to those in smaller classes (64%). This means that large classes have a negative
effect on learning progress, thus it needs to be addressed in order to ensure effective teaching and learning of
mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria.
1.1 Statement of the Problem
The issue of quality and quantity of mathematics teachers is important because without quality teachers in the
right quantity, there will be no effective teaching and without effective teaching, students will find it difficult to
learn and succeed in mathematics. They will also find it difficult to develop interest, understand and pass their
examinations with good grades. This is because it has been found that teacher experience, attitude and level of
education significantly correlate with students’ achievement in mathematics. It has also been found that
sufficient number of qualified teachers exert considerable influence on students’ learning and achievement in
mathematics (Obodo, 2004). However, what is yet to be ascertained in the present circumstance is the quantity
and quality of mathematics teachers as it affects public secondary schools that are in different geographical areas
in Nigeria and how they are distributed in terms of their qualifications, teaching experience and gender within
the areas. This study, therefore, set out to address this problem. This is significant because of the need to know
the categories of teachers engaged in teaching mathematics in public secondary schools over the years in
different locations. Also, it is significant because of the need for up-to-date information on teacher characteristics
with respect to teaching and learning mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria.
1.2 Objectives of the Study
The main objective of this study was to examine the quantity and quality of mathematics teachers in public
secondary schools in Nigeria. The specific objectives of the study include finding out:
- the quantity of mathematics teachers
- the qualifications of the teachers
- the pattern of their distribution in the secondary schools
- their years of teaching experience
- the teacher/student ratio
1.3 Research Questions
The following questions were raised to guide the study:
- What is the quantity of qualified mathematics teachers in public secondary schools?
- What are their teaching qualifications?
- How many are qualified to teach mathematics based on gender?
- What are their years of teaching experience in the secondary school?
- What is the ratio of qualified mathematics teachers to students in the secondary school?
2. Method
The research design employed in the study was a descriptive survey method. The sample consisted of 83
mathematics teachers (71 males and 12 females), and 19,323 students from 58 public secondary schools in
Mangu, Pankshin and Kanam in Central Plateau state, Nigeria. 38 of the teachers were from Mangu, 32 from
Pankshin and 13 from Kanam while 6,615 of the students were from Mangu, 7,624 from Pankshin and 5,084
from Kanam. The three areas were selected using simple random sampling technique while the sample of
teachers and students were selected using purposive sampling technique. For this reason, all the mathematics
teachers and students from the 58 schools in the three areas were selected for the study.
Data collection was done using questionnaire tagged Quality and Quantity of Mathematics Teachers
(QQMT). This was based on examining the quantity and quality of teachers, their teaching experiences, gender
and students’ enrolment from the schools selected for the study. The QQMT was subjected to experts’ scrutiny
for face and content validities. The corrections and suggestions of the experts were used to improve the QQMT.
Observer agreement method was used to find the reliability of the QQMT. Thus two independent observers were
asked to rate the QQMT. The ratings were compared by finding the percentage of agreement. The inter-rater
reliability coefficient of the agreement was calculated. This yielded 85%. Thereafter, the QQMT was
administered to the sample. This was done with the assistance of the Inspectors of Education from the Area
Inspectorate Offices under which the selected schools were supervised or monitored. This took more than three
Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org
ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online)
Vol.5, No.31, 2014
23
weeks because the researchers had to go through the Zonal and Area Inspectorate Offices before collecting the
information. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics.
3. Results
Table 1. Quantity, Quality & Teaching Experience of the Mathematics Teachers from the three Areas: Mangu(1-
Sch), Pankshin(2-Sch) and Kanam (3-Sch)
1-Sch.
No.ofTrs.
Qual.
Yrs.ofExp.
2-Sch.
No.ofTrs.
Qual.
Yrs.ofExp.
3-Sch.
No.ofTrs.
Qual.
Yrs.ofExp.
1 2 NCE 18 1 2 BSc.(Ed) 25 1 1 NCE 5
NCE 18 NCE 9 2 2 BSc.(Ed) 21
2 - - - 2 - - - BSc.(Ed) 19
3 2 B.Ed 9 3 1 B.Sc 22 3 - - -
B.Sc 5 4 1 B.Ed 19 4 - - -
4 1 B.Sc 19 5 4 NCE 24 5 1 NCE 21
5 - - - NCE 14 6 2 NCE 10
6 3 NCE 14 NCE 11 NCE 6
NCE 10 NCE 2 7 1 NCE 20
NCE 9 6 4 BSc.(Ed) 18 8 1 NCE 2
7 - - - BSc.(Ed) 16 9 1 NCE 3
8 3 NCE 21 BSc.(Ed) 6 10 1 NCE 6
NCE 9 NCE 6 11 1 BSc.(Ed) 2
NCE 9 7 2 NCE 6 12 1 NCE 7
9 1 NCE 9 NCE 2 13 1 NCE 15
10 1 BSc.(Ed) 21 8 2 B.Tech 4 14 - - -
11 2 NCE 26 NCE 3
NCE 5 9 - - -
12 2 NCE 2 10 1 NCE 2
NCE 2 11 1 NCE 4
13 1 NCE 2 12 2 M.Ed 30
14 1 NCE 11 B.Sc 4
15 2 BSc.(Ed) 27 13 2 BSc.(Ed) 30
NCE 16 NCE 1
16 2 BSc.(Ed) 4 14 1 NCE 2
NCE 8 15 - - -
17 2 NCE 10 16 1 NCE 5
NCE 5 17 2 B.Sc 16
18 2 BSc.(Ed) 18 NCE 2
NCE 6 18 1 NCE 6
19 4 NCE 23 19 - - -
NCE 18 20 - - -
NCE 2 21 - - -
NCE 2 22 5 NCE 29
20 4 BSc.(Ed) 21 NCE 14
NCE 14 NCE 9
NCE 14 NCE 6
NCE 9 NCE 2
21 3 BSc.(Ed) 4
NCE 10
NCE 2
22 - - -
Table 1 revealed that the mathematics teachers possess various qualifications. These are NCE, B.Ed., B.Sc. (Ed.)
B.Sc. and M.Ed. Some schools have no mathematics teachers, majority have one mathematics teacher each, few
have between 2-4 mathematics teachers and only one has 5 of them. Majority of the teachers are NCE holders
while only one has M.Ed. degree.
Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org
ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online)
Vol.5, No.31, 2014
24
Table 2. Quantity of Mathematics Teachers Based on their Years of Teaching Experience
Study
Area
Number of Secondary
Schools
Number of
Teachers
Less than 5
years Exp.
5-10 years
Exp.
More than 10
years Exp.
Mangu 22 38 9 14 15
Pankshin 22 32 12 8 12
Kanam 14 13 3 5 5
Total 58 83 24 27 32
Table 2 shows that from a total of 58 public secondary schools with a total of 83 mathematics teachers, 24
teachers have less than 5 years teaching experience, 27 have between 5-10 years experience while 32 have more
than 10 years experience.
Table 3. Quantity of Mathematics Teachers Based on their Teaching Qualifications
Study Area NCE HND/B.Sc. Without Education B.Sc.(Ed.)/ B.Ed. M.Sc.(Ed.) M.Ed.
Mangu 29 2 7 -
Pankshin 21 4 6 1
Kanam 10 - 3 -
Total 60(72.3%) 6(7.2%) 16(19.3%) 1(1.2%)
Table 3 shows that 60(72.3%) of the teachers have NCE, 6(7.2%) have HND/B.Sc. without Education, 16(19.3%)
have B.Sc.(Ed.)/B.Ed. and 1(1.2%) has M.Ed. certificate in mathematics.
Table 4. Teacher/Student Ratio and Quantity of Mathematics Teachers Based on their Gender
Study
Area
Mathematics
Teachers
Number
of
Students
Teacher/
Student
ratio
Number of
Males (%)
Number of
Females (%)
Difference Between
Male & Female (%)
Mangu 38 6,615 1:174 32(84.2) 6(15.8) 26(68.4)
Pankshin 32 7,624 1:238 28(87.5) 4(12.5) 24(75.0)
Kanam 13 5,084 1:391 11(84.6) 2(15.4) 9(69.2)
Total 83 19,323 1:233 71(85.5) 12(14.5) 59(71.0)
Table 4 shows that there are 83 teachers with a student population of 19,323. Overall, the teacher/student ratio is
1:233. This varies from one area to another with Mangu having the least ratio 1:174. Also, there are 71(85.5%)
male and 12(14.5%) female teachers from the three areas showing that the males outnumber the female teachers
by far (71.0%).
Table 5. Quality of Mathematics Teachers Based on Gender from the Study Areas
Gender NCE HND/B.Sc. B.Sc.(Ed.)/B.Ed./M.Ed. Total
Male 51 6 15 72
Female 09 - 02 11
Total 60 6 17 83
Table 5 shows that, out of a total of 72 male teachers, 51 are NCE holders, 6 are graduates without teaching
qualifications and 15 are qualified with B.Sc.(Ed.)/(B.Ed.)/M.Ed. degrees. Also, out of a total of 11 female
teachers, 9 are NCE holders and only 2 are qualified with B.Sc.(Ed.)/(B.Ed.) degrees.
Table 6. Qualifications of the Mathematics Teachers Based on their Years of Teaching Experience
Yrs of Teaching NCE HND/B.Sc. B.Ed./B.Sc.(Ed) M.Ed./M.Sc.(Ed.) Total
Less than 5yrs 19 2 3 - 24
5-10yrs 24 1 2 - 27
More than 10yrs 17 3 11 1 32
Total 60 6 16 1 83
Table 6 shows that 19 teachers with NCE have less than five years teaching experience, 24 have 5-10
years experience and 17 have over 10 years experience. Also, 3 teachers with B.Sc.(Ed.)/B.Ed. have less than
five years teaching experience, 2 have 5-10 years experience and 11 have more than 10 years experience. This
shows that teachers with NCE have more years of teaching experience than others.
Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org
ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online)
Vol.5, No.31, 2014
25
3.1 Discussion
This study was designed to examine and provide insight into the quantity and quality of mathematics teachers in
the secondary school and the implications for national development in Nigeria. The findings from the study
revealed that the quality and quantity of teachers from the three selected areas in Nigeria (Mangu, Pankshin,
Kanam) are not enough for effective mathematics instruction in the secondary school. This is because over 72%
of them are NCE holders and NCE is not the minimum qualification required for teaching in the secondary
school in Nigeria. Consequently, the proper preparation of students especially for external mathematics
examinations will be difficult due to the low level training and qualifications of the teachers. Probably, this is
one of the main reasons why many secondary school students perform poorly in mathematics in Nigeria.
On the extent of availability of mathematics teachers, the findings from the study revealed that only 83
teachers are in the 58 secondary schools in the areas of the study with various qualifications. This means that, on
the average, there are less than two teachers per school with nothing less than six classes to teach on daily basis.
This is highly inadequate, thus this is partly responsible for the poor performance of students in mathematics.
This concurred with Lassa (2012) who said that the shortage of mathematics teachers is one of the challenges
facing the teaching and learning of mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria.
On qualifications, it was found out that 72.3% of the teachers are NCE, 19.3% are B.Sc. (Ed.)/B.Ed.
and 1.2% posses M.Ed. Those with HND/B.Sc. without education constitute 7.2% indicating that majority of the
teachers are NCE holders. The NCE is the minimum qualification for teaching in the primary school and not
secondary school in Nigeria. This means that secondary schools in Nigeria do not have the right quality of
mathematics teachers. To address this problem, there is need to recruit only degree holders with education
background in large quantity. Also, the NCE holders should be encouraged and sponsored to go for further
training to acquire higher teaching qualifications.
On the quantity and gender of the teachers in various schools within the study areas, the findings from
the study showed that some of the schools have four to five mathematics teachers while some have none. It was
also found out that 85.5% of the teachers are males while 14.5% are females. This means that men dominate the
teaching of mathematics in the secondary schools. To bridge this gap, female students should be encouraged and
motivated to study mathematics education in the universities and colleges of education and subsequently be
employed to teach mathematics.
Furthermore, the findings from the study revealed that 71.1% of the teachers have at least five years
teaching experience. This is good but it is inadequate considering that there is a strong correlation between
teaching experience and performance of students in mathematics. The findings from the study in relation to
teacher/student ratio showed that on the average, the ratio is too high 1:233, that is, one teacher to about two
hundred and thirty-three students. This contradicts the National Policy on Education (FGN, 2004) in Nigeria
which stipulated a teacher/student ratio of 1:40. To reduce this ratio, therefore, a large number of qualified
mathematics teachers should be employed.
3.2 Implications
The concept of national development simply refers to the ability of a nation to improve the welfare of its citizens
by developing infrastructures, goods and services like roads, hospitals, air and sea ports, schools, health, sports
and so on. In the absence of mathematics, meaningful development cannot take place since it is the bedrock and
language of science and technology and it is useful for social, political, economic and cultural transformation.
Thus mathematics need to given due consideration.
Teaching mathematics effectively requires enough time to be able to plan and deliver good lessons
involving giving class work and assignments to be marked after every lesson, and good evaluation practice.
However, the findings from this study showed that it will be difficult for mathematics as a subject to be taught
effectively with only few qualified teachers and a high teacher/student ratio of 1:233 on the average. For this
reason, the performance of students will continue to be affected whereas they are supposed to excel in
mathematics in order to contribute their own quota in national development in Nigeria.
The findings from the study show that about 72.3% of the mathematics teachers are NCE holders but
the FGN (2004) expects teachers especially those at the senior secondary school level to be degree holders in
education. Thus the NCE teachers are not qualified to teach mathematics at this level. This explains why Odili
(2006) stated that most mathematics teachers are not adequately qualified. This problem needs to be addressed in
the interest of national development in Nigeria. Also, it has been pointed out that teacher’s years of teaching
experience is a measure of the quality of teaching and performance of students in mathematics because there is a
correlation between the two variables. Although this study found out that majority of the mathematics teachers
have at least five years teaching experience, a large quantity of experienced mathematics teachers need to be
employed and retained on the job by the state or federal government to argument the shortfall. This should be
done immediately in the interest of national development. To encourage mathematics teachers to be effective in
teaching, the student/teacher ratio should be reduced drastically. To this end, apart from employing teachers, the
Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org
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Vol.5, No.31, 2014
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students should be split into smaller teaching and learning units and taught by well qualified and experienced
teachers to make the learning easy and productive.
Also, it was found out in the study that males dominate the teaching of mathematics in the secondary
school. In the interest of national development, female students should be encouraged to study mathematics
education in the universities. They should be employed to teach mathematics immediately after their graduation.
This will help in motivating female students in the secondary school to develop interest in the subject and learn it
well towards better performance.
3.3 Recommendations
Based on the findings from the study, the following recommendations are made:
- The states and the federal governments should employ qualified mathematics teachers to teach mathematics in
the secondary schools in Nigeria.
- Teachers who are not qualified to teach mathematics in the secondary school should be encouraged to go for
further studies in tertiary institutions to acquire higher teaching qualifications.
- The high teacher/student ratio in the secondary school should be reduced drastically to the normal ratio by
employing more qualified teachers and creating more classrooms for the students.
- Female students who desire to study mathematics education at any level of tertiary education in Nigeria should
be encouraged and motivated to do so at no cost by the state and federal governments. Immediately after their
graduation, they should be given employment to teach mathematics in the secondary schools that are grossly
short-staffed. This will help in reducing the gender disparity in the recruitment of mathematics teachers in the
secondary school in Nigeria.
3.4 Conclusion
This study, among other things, has shown that there is inadequate number of qualified mathematics teachers in
public secondary schools in Nigeria. For this reason, a large number of qualified teachers should be employed in
the interest of national development in Nigeria.
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A study on quantity and quality of mathematics teachers in central plateau state, nigeria implications for national development in nigeria

  • 1. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 20 A Study on Quantity and Quality of Mathematics Teachers in Central Plateau State, Nigeria: Implications for National Development in Nigeria Thomas D. Bot (Ph.D)1* Mbwas Luka Caleb2 1.Department of Science and Technology Education, Faculty of Education, University of Jos, Jos, Plateau State Nigeria 2.Department of General Studies in Education, Federal College of Education, Pankshin, Plateau State, Nigeria *Email:tomasbot@gmail.com Abstract This study examined and provided insight into the quality and quantity of mathematics teachers in secondary schools in central Plateau state, Nigeria, using descriptive survey research design.The sample consisted of 83 mathematics teachers and 19,323 students from 58 secondary schools located in three geographical areas of Mangu, Pankshin and Kanam. The sample was selected using simple random and purposive sampling techniques. For this reason, all the mathematics teachers and students from the 58 secondary schools in the three areas were selected. The instrument for data collection was a questionnaire tagged QQMT. This was developed based on the quantity of mathematics teachers, qualifications, teaching experience, gender and enrollment of students in secondary schools in the three areas. The QQMT was validated by experts. Observer agreement method was used to find the reliability. The inter-rater reliability coefficient was 85%. The data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics. The findings from the study revealed that mathematics teachers from the study areas possess different qualifications ranging from NCE, B.Ed., B.Sc.(Ed.), B.Sc. to M.Ed. degrees. Some schools have no mathematics teachers, many have one each and a few have between 2-4 teachers. Majority of the teachers have NCE certificates while only one has M.Ed. degree in mathematics. Also, out of the 83 teachers, 24 have less than 5 years teaching experience, 27 have between 5-10 years and 32 have more than 10 years teaching experience. The average teacher/student ratio was 1:233. The implications of the study for national development in Nigeria were discussed. Among other things, it was recommended that the government should employ more qualified mathematics teachers and those serving but are not qualified should go for further studies to acquire higher teaching qualifications. Keywords: Mathematics Education, Performance, Secondary School, Teachers, Quality, Quantity 1. Introduction One of the causes of poor performance of students in mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria and elsewhere in the world is poor quality and quantity of teachers (Ingersoll & Perda, 2009). Quality has to do with category of teachers that have been trained formally for the task of teaching mathematics. In Nigeria, trained teachers for the secondary school level are supposed to have a minimum of the Bachelor of Science Education (B.Sc. (Ed.)) or Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) degrees before they are qualified to teach any subject including mathematics. Usually, the training of the prospective teachers take place in recognized tertiary institutions like the Colleges of Education (COE), Universities and Institutes of Education (IOE) in Nigerian universities. Quantity represents the total number of qualified teachers who are employed to teach mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria. The quality and quantity of mathematics teachers in the secondary school determines to a large extent how successful students learn, understand and perform in mathematics. This is because mathematics teachers that are qualified and employed in the right quantity are supposed to teach effectively leading to successful learning and improved performance for students. But in a situation where the teachers are not qualified, they cannot teach effectively since they will find the teaching difficult, therefore, this will affect the understanding and performance of their students in mathematics negatively. Unfortunately, the problem of lack of effective teaching is affecting Nigerian students because the education system as a whole is said to be faced with many challenges like acute shortage of qualified teachers, large class-size, archaic facilities and infrastructures and so on (Ukeje, 1999). The shortage of qualified teachers in Nigeria for example, can be seen from the following analysis. In 2006, it was reported that Nigeria had a total of 222,238 teachers. From this number, only 97,213(43.7%) were graduates with teaching qualifications, 45,172(20.3%) were graduates without teaching qualifications, 63,518(28.6%) were holders of Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE), 10,620(4.8%) were diploma certificate holders and about 27% of the total teaching force were grade II, SSCE and other certificate holders (FME, 2006). The report further revealed that Nigeria had a total of 14,942 secondary schools with 4,984,560 students. The Gross Intake Rates (GIR) for junior and senior secondary school students were 21% and 23% respectively. According to the FME report, out of the 14,942 secondary schools, 7,562(51%) were public
  • 2. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 21 schools, 3,624(24%) were private and 3,756(25%) were not public or private. From this information, it means that on the average there are in Nigeria approximately 334 students, 15 teachers, 6 graduate teachers with teaching qualifications and teacher/student ratio of 1:55 per secondary school. This means that the average number of qualified teachers in each secondary school is inadequate with a high teacher/student ratio and gross intake rates. Also, the number of teachers with NCE certificates still teaching in the secondary schools is high. This is not normal as it is contrary to the required minimum teaching qualification in Nigeria. Furthermore, the quality and quantity of teachers affects the performance of students in mathematics if the teachers are not adequate in number and they are overloaded with too many lesson periods and other responsibilities in the school. Also, the issue of large class-size does not guarantee effective teaching and learning of mathematics because it affects the output of teachers in the class. On the contrary, when there is sufficient quantity of qualified teachers in the school system, the teaching of mathematics will be made more effective. This will lead to improvement in understanding and performance as well as the development and fostering of more positive attitudes towards mathematics among students. Since qualified mathematics teachers in the right quantity are supposed to teach effectively by virtue of their training, it is important for the government at all levels and other education providers to employ and retain only the qualified teachers for the purpose of effective mathematics teaching in the secondary school. The retention is important because it is said to be the antidote to staffing problems (Ingersoll & Perda, 2009). Also, it will help in improving the performance of students in mathematics significantly. But if the qualified teachers are not retained and they keep coming in and going out of the teaching profession to greener areas, it will affect the performance of students in mathematics negatively due to what has been described as the problems of teaching (Ibraheem & Ogunnusi, 2001). According to the authors, the problems account for about 67% of the failure rates of students in mathematics while negative attitudes and difficulty of mathematics itself accounts for about 12% and 21% respectively. This means that if qualified teachers are not retained to ameliorate the effects of the teaching problems, students will continue to record poor performance in mathematics mainly due to lack of proper teaching. Furthermore, since mathematics is important, it is important also to have it taught by sufficient number of qualified and interested or motivated teachers. The National Policy on Education (FGN, 2004) stated that no education can rise above the quality of its teachers. This means that if the quality of teachers is poor without having interest in teaching, the education system will be poor and if the education system is poor, it will result in poor quality products and this will affect the development of Nigeria. Similarly, the teaching of mathematics requires qualified teachers that are well experienced, if not, those that are not qualified may engage in practices that may short-change students like teaching with poorly prepared lessons, avoiding some topics that may appear difficult for them to teach but are very important for students to learn, making unnecessary computational mistakes that should be avoided and treating students without respect and so on. These can affect the performance and interest of students in mathematics. The report of the Chief Examiner (WAEC, 2009) clearly stated that students have shallow knowledge of mathematics, lack mathematical/manipulative skills and so on simply because they were exposed to poor teaching. As a result, their performance is low, interest is depressing and their rate of failure devastating (Obioma, 1990; Agwagah, 2004). Beyond this, students tend to be affected in their performance in other school subjects like physics and chemistry adversely with poor performance in mathematics. WAEC (2006) noted that the marks lost by each physics student from poor knowledge of mathematics account for 50%. Obomanu and Adaramola (2011) stated that the poor knowledge of mathematics is one of the major problems militating against the success of students in chemistry. These problems can be resolved if teachers who are interested, qualified, motivated and well experienced in the right quantity are employed to teach mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria. As discussed earlier, there is no doubt that the issue of qualified teachers who are employed in the right quantity among other things is a key element for effective teaching of mathematics. This is supported by many research findings. For example, it has been found that the depth of the knowledge of mathematics correlates strongly with the depth of teachers’ mathematical knowledge (Bergeson, 2002), that qualified mathematics teachers help students to score high marks in mathematics (Bergeson, 2002) and that there exists a strong correlation between the ability, education and experience of teachers and achievement of students (Greenwald, Hedges & Lane, 1996). Also, it has been found out that a strong correlation exists between competence/quality of teachers and students’ performance/achievement in mathematics with the result that teacher experience/competence is said to be the predictors of students’ performance in many school subjects (Adeyemi, 2008; Fetler, 1999). This means that the more experienced teachers are the better they are able to teach mathematics effectively. One of the factors that affect the performance of students in mathematics also is large class-size which has been highlighted briefly. Class-size is the number of students per teacher in a classroom. It varies from one school to another and from one country to another (Adeyimi, 2008). In Nigeria, the FGN (2004) recommended that the teacher/student ratio should be 1:40 in the secondary school but this is not the case because of the
  • 3. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 22 problem of acute shortage of qualified teachers and large students enrolment such that many schools register up to 50-100 students and above per class (Ijaiye, 1999). However, class-size needs to be small or normal because it helps in promoting effective teaching and learning of mathematics. Blatchford (2009) observed that small class- size makes it easy for teachers to spot problems and give feedback, identify specific needs and gear teaching to meet them but large classes do not. He found out that pupils in small reading and mathematics classes performed significantly better than those in regular classes. Yara (2010) found out that the performance of students in large classes is low (23%) compared to those in smaller classes (64%). This means that large classes have a negative effect on learning progress, thus it needs to be addressed in order to ensure effective teaching and learning of mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria. 1.1 Statement of the Problem The issue of quality and quantity of mathematics teachers is important because without quality teachers in the right quantity, there will be no effective teaching and without effective teaching, students will find it difficult to learn and succeed in mathematics. They will also find it difficult to develop interest, understand and pass their examinations with good grades. This is because it has been found that teacher experience, attitude and level of education significantly correlate with students’ achievement in mathematics. It has also been found that sufficient number of qualified teachers exert considerable influence on students’ learning and achievement in mathematics (Obodo, 2004). However, what is yet to be ascertained in the present circumstance is the quantity and quality of mathematics teachers as it affects public secondary schools that are in different geographical areas in Nigeria and how they are distributed in terms of their qualifications, teaching experience and gender within the areas. This study, therefore, set out to address this problem. This is significant because of the need to know the categories of teachers engaged in teaching mathematics in public secondary schools over the years in different locations. Also, it is significant because of the need for up-to-date information on teacher characteristics with respect to teaching and learning mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria. 1.2 Objectives of the Study The main objective of this study was to examine the quantity and quality of mathematics teachers in public secondary schools in Nigeria. The specific objectives of the study include finding out: - the quantity of mathematics teachers - the qualifications of the teachers - the pattern of their distribution in the secondary schools - their years of teaching experience - the teacher/student ratio 1.3 Research Questions The following questions were raised to guide the study: - What is the quantity of qualified mathematics teachers in public secondary schools? - What are their teaching qualifications? - How many are qualified to teach mathematics based on gender? - What are their years of teaching experience in the secondary school? - What is the ratio of qualified mathematics teachers to students in the secondary school? 2. Method The research design employed in the study was a descriptive survey method. The sample consisted of 83 mathematics teachers (71 males and 12 females), and 19,323 students from 58 public secondary schools in Mangu, Pankshin and Kanam in Central Plateau state, Nigeria. 38 of the teachers were from Mangu, 32 from Pankshin and 13 from Kanam while 6,615 of the students were from Mangu, 7,624 from Pankshin and 5,084 from Kanam. The three areas were selected using simple random sampling technique while the sample of teachers and students were selected using purposive sampling technique. For this reason, all the mathematics teachers and students from the 58 schools in the three areas were selected for the study. Data collection was done using questionnaire tagged Quality and Quantity of Mathematics Teachers (QQMT). This was based on examining the quantity and quality of teachers, their teaching experiences, gender and students’ enrolment from the schools selected for the study. The QQMT was subjected to experts’ scrutiny for face and content validities. The corrections and suggestions of the experts were used to improve the QQMT. Observer agreement method was used to find the reliability of the QQMT. Thus two independent observers were asked to rate the QQMT. The ratings were compared by finding the percentage of agreement. The inter-rater reliability coefficient of the agreement was calculated. This yielded 85%. Thereafter, the QQMT was administered to the sample. This was done with the assistance of the Inspectors of Education from the Area Inspectorate Offices under which the selected schools were supervised or monitored. This took more than three
  • 4. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 23 weeks because the researchers had to go through the Zonal and Area Inspectorate Offices before collecting the information. Data analysis was done using descriptive statistics. 3. Results Table 1. Quantity, Quality & Teaching Experience of the Mathematics Teachers from the three Areas: Mangu(1- Sch), Pankshin(2-Sch) and Kanam (3-Sch) 1-Sch. No.ofTrs. Qual. Yrs.ofExp. 2-Sch. No.ofTrs. Qual. Yrs.ofExp. 3-Sch. No.ofTrs. Qual. Yrs.ofExp. 1 2 NCE 18 1 2 BSc.(Ed) 25 1 1 NCE 5 NCE 18 NCE 9 2 2 BSc.(Ed) 21 2 - - - 2 - - - BSc.(Ed) 19 3 2 B.Ed 9 3 1 B.Sc 22 3 - - - B.Sc 5 4 1 B.Ed 19 4 - - - 4 1 B.Sc 19 5 4 NCE 24 5 1 NCE 21 5 - - - NCE 14 6 2 NCE 10 6 3 NCE 14 NCE 11 NCE 6 NCE 10 NCE 2 7 1 NCE 20 NCE 9 6 4 BSc.(Ed) 18 8 1 NCE 2 7 - - - BSc.(Ed) 16 9 1 NCE 3 8 3 NCE 21 BSc.(Ed) 6 10 1 NCE 6 NCE 9 NCE 6 11 1 BSc.(Ed) 2 NCE 9 7 2 NCE 6 12 1 NCE 7 9 1 NCE 9 NCE 2 13 1 NCE 15 10 1 BSc.(Ed) 21 8 2 B.Tech 4 14 - - - 11 2 NCE 26 NCE 3 NCE 5 9 - - - 12 2 NCE 2 10 1 NCE 2 NCE 2 11 1 NCE 4 13 1 NCE 2 12 2 M.Ed 30 14 1 NCE 11 B.Sc 4 15 2 BSc.(Ed) 27 13 2 BSc.(Ed) 30 NCE 16 NCE 1 16 2 BSc.(Ed) 4 14 1 NCE 2 NCE 8 15 - - - 17 2 NCE 10 16 1 NCE 5 NCE 5 17 2 B.Sc 16 18 2 BSc.(Ed) 18 NCE 2 NCE 6 18 1 NCE 6 19 4 NCE 23 19 - - - NCE 18 20 - - - NCE 2 21 - - - NCE 2 22 5 NCE 29 20 4 BSc.(Ed) 21 NCE 14 NCE 14 NCE 9 NCE 14 NCE 6 NCE 9 NCE 2 21 3 BSc.(Ed) 4 NCE 10 NCE 2 22 - - - Table 1 revealed that the mathematics teachers possess various qualifications. These are NCE, B.Ed., B.Sc. (Ed.) B.Sc. and M.Ed. Some schools have no mathematics teachers, majority have one mathematics teacher each, few have between 2-4 mathematics teachers and only one has 5 of them. Majority of the teachers are NCE holders while only one has M.Ed. degree.
  • 5. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 24 Table 2. Quantity of Mathematics Teachers Based on their Years of Teaching Experience Study Area Number of Secondary Schools Number of Teachers Less than 5 years Exp. 5-10 years Exp. More than 10 years Exp. Mangu 22 38 9 14 15 Pankshin 22 32 12 8 12 Kanam 14 13 3 5 5 Total 58 83 24 27 32 Table 2 shows that from a total of 58 public secondary schools with a total of 83 mathematics teachers, 24 teachers have less than 5 years teaching experience, 27 have between 5-10 years experience while 32 have more than 10 years experience. Table 3. Quantity of Mathematics Teachers Based on their Teaching Qualifications Study Area NCE HND/B.Sc. Without Education B.Sc.(Ed.)/ B.Ed. M.Sc.(Ed.) M.Ed. Mangu 29 2 7 - Pankshin 21 4 6 1 Kanam 10 - 3 - Total 60(72.3%) 6(7.2%) 16(19.3%) 1(1.2%) Table 3 shows that 60(72.3%) of the teachers have NCE, 6(7.2%) have HND/B.Sc. without Education, 16(19.3%) have B.Sc.(Ed.)/B.Ed. and 1(1.2%) has M.Ed. certificate in mathematics. Table 4. Teacher/Student Ratio and Quantity of Mathematics Teachers Based on their Gender Study Area Mathematics Teachers Number of Students Teacher/ Student ratio Number of Males (%) Number of Females (%) Difference Between Male & Female (%) Mangu 38 6,615 1:174 32(84.2) 6(15.8) 26(68.4) Pankshin 32 7,624 1:238 28(87.5) 4(12.5) 24(75.0) Kanam 13 5,084 1:391 11(84.6) 2(15.4) 9(69.2) Total 83 19,323 1:233 71(85.5) 12(14.5) 59(71.0) Table 4 shows that there are 83 teachers with a student population of 19,323. Overall, the teacher/student ratio is 1:233. This varies from one area to another with Mangu having the least ratio 1:174. Also, there are 71(85.5%) male and 12(14.5%) female teachers from the three areas showing that the males outnumber the female teachers by far (71.0%). Table 5. Quality of Mathematics Teachers Based on Gender from the Study Areas Gender NCE HND/B.Sc. B.Sc.(Ed.)/B.Ed./M.Ed. Total Male 51 6 15 72 Female 09 - 02 11 Total 60 6 17 83 Table 5 shows that, out of a total of 72 male teachers, 51 are NCE holders, 6 are graduates without teaching qualifications and 15 are qualified with B.Sc.(Ed.)/(B.Ed.)/M.Ed. degrees. Also, out of a total of 11 female teachers, 9 are NCE holders and only 2 are qualified with B.Sc.(Ed.)/(B.Ed.) degrees. Table 6. Qualifications of the Mathematics Teachers Based on their Years of Teaching Experience Yrs of Teaching NCE HND/B.Sc. B.Ed./B.Sc.(Ed) M.Ed./M.Sc.(Ed.) Total Less than 5yrs 19 2 3 - 24 5-10yrs 24 1 2 - 27 More than 10yrs 17 3 11 1 32 Total 60 6 16 1 83 Table 6 shows that 19 teachers with NCE have less than five years teaching experience, 24 have 5-10 years experience and 17 have over 10 years experience. Also, 3 teachers with B.Sc.(Ed.)/B.Ed. have less than five years teaching experience, 2 have 5-10 years experience and 11 have more than 10 years experience. This shows that teachers with NCE have more years of teaching experience than others.
  • 6. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 25 3.1 Discussion This study was designed to examine and provide insight into the quantity and quality of mathematics teachers in the secondary school and the implications for national development in Nigeria. The findings from the study revealed that the quality and quantity of teachers from the three selected areas in Nigeria (Mangu, Pankshin, Kanam) are not enough for effective mathematics instruction in the secondary school. This is because over 72% of them are NCE holders and NCE is not the minimum qualification required for teaching in the secondary school in Nigeria. Consequently, the proper preparation of students especially for external mathematics examinations will be difficult due to the low level training and qualifications of the teachers. Probably, this is one of the main reasons why many secondary school students perform poorly in mathematics in Nigeria. On the extent of availability of mathematics teachers, the findings from the study revealed that only 83 teachers are in the 58 secondary schools in the areas of the study with various qualifications. This means that, on the average, there are less than two teachers per school with nothing less than six classes to teach on daily basis. This is highly inadequate, thus this is partly responsible for the poor performance of students in mathematics. This concurred with Lassa (2012) who said that the shortage of mathematics teachers is one of the challenges facing the teaching and learning of mathematics in the secondary school in Nigeria. On qualifications, it was found out that 72.3% of the teachers are NCE, 19.3% are B.Sc. (Ed.)/B.Ed. and 1.2% posses M.Ed. Those with HND/B.Sc. without education constitute 7.2% indicating that majority of the teachers are NCE holders. The NCE is the minimum qualification for teaching in the primary school and not secondary school in Nigeria. This means that secondary schools in Nigeria do not have the right quality of mathematics teachers. To address this problem, there is need to recruit only degree holders with education background in large quantity. Also, the NCE holders should be encouraged and sponsored to go for further training to acquire higher teaching qualifications. On the quantity and gender of the teachers in various schools within the study areas, the findings from the study showed that some of the schools have four to five mathematics teachers while some have none. It was also found out that 85.5% of the teachers are males while 14.5% are females. This means that men dominate the teaching of mathematics in the secondary schools. To bridge this gap, female students should be encouraged and motivated to study mathematics education in the universities and colleges of education and subsequently be employed to teach mathematics. Furthermore, the findings from the study revealed that 71.1% of the teachers have at least five years teaching experience. This is good but it is inadequate considering that there is a strong correlation between teaching experience and performance of students in mathematics. The findings from the study in relation to teacher/student ratio showed that on the average, the ratio is too high 1:233, that is, one teacher to about two hundred and thirty-three students. This contradicts the National Policy on Education (FGN, 2004) in Nigeria which stipulated a teacher/student ratio of 1:40. To reduce this ratio, therefore, a large number of qualified mathematics teachers should be employed. 3.2 Implications The concept of national development simply refers to the ability of a nation to improve the welfare of its citizens by developing infrastructures, goods and services like roads, hospitals, air and sea ports, schools, health, sports and so on. In the absence of mathematics, meaningful development cannot take place since it is the bedrock and language of science and technology and it is useful for social, political, economic and cultural transformation. Thus mathematics need to given due consideration. Teaching mathematics effectively requires enough time to be able to plan and deliver good lessons involving giving class work and assignments to be marked after every lesson, and good evaluation practice. However, the findings from this study showed that it will be difficult for mathematics as a subject to be taught effectively with only few qualified teachers and a high teacher/student ratio of 1:233 on the average. For this reason, the performance of students will continue to be affected whereas they are supposed to excel in mathematics in order to contribute their own quota in national development in Nigeria. The findings from the study show that about 72.3% of the mathematics teachers are NCE holders but the FGN (2004) expects teachers especially those at the senior secondary school level to be degree holders in education. Thus the NCE teachers are not qualified to teach mathematics at this level. This explains why Odili (2006) stated that most mathematics teachers are not adequately qualified. This problem needs to be addressed in the interest of national development in Nigeria. Also, it has been pointed out that teacher’s years of teaching experience is a measure of the quality of teaching and performance of students in mathematics because there is a correlation between the two variables. Although this study found out that majority of the mathematics teachers have at least five years teaching experience, a large quantity of experienced mathematics teachers need to be employed and retained on the job by the state or federal government to argument the shortfall. This should be done immediately in the interest of national development. To encourage mathematics teachers to be effective in teaching, the student/teacher ratio should be reduced drastically. To this end, apart from employing teachers, the
  • 7. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 26 students should be split into smaller teaching and learning units and taught by well qualified and experienced teachers to make the learning easy and productive. Also, it was found out in the study that males dominate the teaching of mathematics in the secondary school. In the interest of national development, female students should be encouraged to study mathematics education in the universities. They should be employed to teach mathematics immediately after their graduation. This will help in motivating female students in the secondary school to develop interest in the subject and learn it well towards better performance. 3.3 Recommendations Based on the findings from the study, the following recommendations are made: - The states and the federal governments should employ qualified mathematics teachers to teach mathematics in the secondary schools in Nigeria. - Teachers who are not qualified to teach mathematics in the secondary school should be encouraged to go for further studies in tertiary institutions to acquire higher teaching qualifications. - The high teacher/student ratio in the secondary school should be reduced drastically to the normal ratio by employing more qualified teachers and creating more classrooms for the students. - Female students who desire to study mathematics education at any level of tertiary education in Nigeria should be encouraged and motivated to do so at no cost by the state and federal governments. Immediately after their graduation, they should be given employment to teach mathematics in the secondary schools that are grossly short-staffed. This will help in reducing the gender disparity in the recruitment of mathematics teachers in the secondary school in Nigeria. 3.4 Conclusion This study, among other things, has shown that there is inadequate number of qualified mathematics teachers in public secondary schools in Nigeria. For this reason, a large number of qualified teachers should be employed in the interest of national development in Nigeria. References Adeyemi, T.O. (2008). The influence of class-size on the quality of output in secondary schools in Ekiti state, Nigeria. American-Eurasian Journal of Scientific Research, 3(1), 7-14. Agwagah, U.N.V. (2004). Sustaining development in secondary school mathematics through constructivist framework: A model lesson plan. Abacus, 29(1), 29-39. Bergeson, T. (2000). Teaching and learning mathematics using research to shift from the “Yesterday” mind to the “Tomorrow” mind. Washington: Superintendent of Public Instruction. Blatchford, P. (2009). Class-size: Psychology of classroom learning. Retrieved November 12, 2011, from http://www.class. Federal Republic of Nigeria, (2004). National policy on education. Lagos: NERDC Publication. Fetler, M. (1999). High school staff characteristics and mathematics test results. Retrieved July 11, 2013, from http://epaa.asu.edu/ojs/article/view. FME, (2006). Federal ministry of education operation reach all secondary schools: Report on the state of secondary schools in Nigeria. Abuja: Federal Inspectorate Service Publication. Greenwald, R., Hedges, L.V. & Lane, R.D. (1996). The effect of school resources on student achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 55(4), 361-396. Ibraheem, A.G. & Ogunnusi, O.S. (2001). The effect of mathematics education on science and technology. In G.C. Obodo (Ed.), Mathematical Association of Nigeria (MAN) proceedings of Sept. 2001 annual conference (pp.88-93). Enugu: CELFX Printers. Ijaiye, Y. (1999). Effects of over-crowded classrooms on teacher-student interactions. Ilorin Journal of Education, 19, 1-8. Ingersoll, R.M. & Perda, D. (2009). The mathematics and sciences teacher shortage: Fact and myth. Retrieved April 21, 2011, from http://www.cpre.org. Lassa, P.N. (2012). The teaching of mathematics for Nigerian secondary schools. Jos: Fab Anieh Nigeria Limited. Obamanu, B.J. & Adaramola,, M.O. (2011). Factors related to under achievement in science, technology and mathematics education in secondary schools in Rivers state, Nigeria. World Journal of Education. 1(1), 102-109. Obioma, G. (1990). Mathematics education in national development: Challenges and new directions. Jos: University Press Ltd. Obodo, G.C. (2004). Principles and practice of mathematics education in Nigeria. Enugu: Floxtone Press. Odili, G.A. (2006). Mathematics in Nigeria secondary schools: A teaching perspective. Port Harcourt: Anachuna
  • 8. Journal of Education and Practice www.iiste.org ISSN 2222-1735 (Paper) ISSN 2222-288X (Online) Vol.5, No.31, 2014 27 Educational Books. Ukeje, B.O. (1999). Teacher education in Nigeria: Current status, 21st century challenges and strategies for improvement. A Key-note Address Presented on the Occasion of an Inter-University Collaborative Workshop on Teacher Education held on 12th Oct., University of Jos, Plateau state. West African Examinations Council, (2009). Chief examiner’s report. Yaba: Lagos. Yara, P.O., (2010). Relationship between teachers’ attitude and students’ academic achievement in mathematics in some selected senior secondary schools in South-Western Nigeria. Retrieved December 15, 2011, from http://www.medwelljournals.com.
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