CHAPTER ONE

1.0     INTRODUCTION

1.1     BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

In its classical definition, and simple definition, education is the transmission or transfers of cultural values, behaviour, believes by adults of a community or a geographical location of people to their children or young ones, that is from one generation to the next generation.

This transmission process embraces and includes knowledge, experiences, skills, habit, values, believes, attitudes, behaviour and many other abilities gained by one generation to the next generation in its ramification.

During the colonial period, the Christian missions set up school to train manpower that would serves as interpreter, clerks, teachers, messengers and so on to enhance their evangelical activities.

These schools were located at both the rural and urban areas. Since the missionaries were in control over these schools before the Government involvement, schools even the rural were adequately staffed and cared for. With rapid development of urban areas and cities with basis facilities such as potable water, electrification and subsequent setting up of industries, there soon began a mass and aggressive drift from rural areas to urban cities.

The teachers were not left out as Some of them began to protest over rural postings with concrete and genuine reasons including women whose husbands and family were already in the cities and town others going includes the medical doctors and hospitals. Yet, there were others who secured urban posting as a result of favouritism and passing through the back doors.

The resultant reasons why people are reluctant to take teaching as a profession in the society cannot be over emphasized. At various time, both federal and state Government to right this society drift by imposing a town year compulsory rural services for all newly employed staffing not be working out effective. Due poor salary scale and perception of the job to the people in the society.

This measure was not fully successful because most of the effected teachers had a way to circumventing the law. Statistics show that generally, students from urban centers perform better than their counterparts from rural areas and the major contributory factor has been traced to inadequate staffing.

The question now is whether it is fair to deny these children the equal educational opportunities necessary to all children of this nation?

Education means a practice, formal or informal which helps to develop the potentialities of human being including their knowledge, capabilities, behavioral patterns and values. In this context the teachers have more responsibilities in shaping and building the character especially mental characters of students. Development of a nation always relies on knowledge acquired through education and its practical Implications. Considering any effective education system or educator, effective instructional strategies with identity and high potentials in which the contents were delivered are the main pillars of quality education system. Teachers are the persons who could develop and mould the learners as good citizens. They should develop higher attitude towards the teaching profession, do extremely well in their academic performance and enhance lifelong skills to face in future. The term “reason” has been defined in a number of ways by the psychologists. Attitude is a mental characteristic. The simplest definition is that, it is a feeling for or against something. According to Britt (2008, it is a mental set of response. Fishbein (2008) defines it as a mental disposition of the human individual to act for or against a definite object. 2008 Allport (2010, P116) defines it as a mental and neural state of readiness, organized through experience, exerting a directive or dynamic influence upon the individual’s response to all objects and situations with which it is related.

In keeping with the policy of equal educational opportunity, a well know educationalist Andrew Urevbu suggested that all hands should be on deck to make education available for all Nigerian. He called on the communities, the professional and even the business bodies as well as cultural and philanthropic organization to come to the aid of Education.

An investigation into the factors or reasons why people are reluctant about teaching profession;

The basic infrastructural facilities are made available for other profession which automatically create a considerate and comfortable living and a better health.

Parents and Students perception towards teachers most especially teachers in private school.

The society at large treat teachers in our society with little or no respect on the other hand the government are also a major contributing factor to this problem as major allocation is given to other profession.

1.2     STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

A lot of variables have contributed to the reasons why people are reluctant to take teaching as a profession.

Teachers constitute a segment of the entire society and belong to the educated elite. The modern trend even in education is geared towards training people to get to higher offices. For this reason, many young graduate have double mind on teaching profession 

People developed negative attitude towards teaching profession in the society as they are not well respected by both parents and students.

Since the highly qualified and competent teachers are use in the classroom, they are only respected in classroom but not respected outside the classroom.

It is established that poor teaching procedures, poor educated children are found due to trained teachers are not willing to teach in classroom anymore.

Therefore, children are always faced with poor teaching method by quack and hungry teachers caricaturing the teaching profession  Trained teacher’s refusal of to teach has created a societal problems.

The spatial distribution of amenities and inadequate infrastructure are part of the basic factors creating avenue for the problem.

To this end, this researcher intends to provide answers to the following question.

1.          Does the sex of the teacher matters in teaching profession?

2.         Does the qualification of the teacher have any effect on his or her profession.

3.       Does graduates in our society see teaching profession as a professional job or part time job.

4.        Does the marital status of a teacher affect his or her acceptance to teaching profession. 

5.          Does the environmental setting has any effect in teaching profession.

1.3     PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The purpose or reason for this study is to examine reasons why people are reluctant to take teaching as a profession. The simple reasons are; financial and social inconveniences particularly at this period of economic squeeze and like in transport fares and accommodation is a result why people frown at teaching profession. As both private and government owned schools are in the habit of owning teachers’ salaries and under payment. 

As a result of these known difficulties that both the civil servant and workers in the private sectors enjoying inconveniences allowances since the colonial era, benefits rarely extended to teachers, hence the discontentment amongst the teachers in the society. Since, the teachers nurse some grudges, there is the danger of ineffectiveness in the discharge of their duties and releasing of their full potentials in the teaching job.

The Nigeria constitution claims to favour and protect the interest of all the citizens and guarantee equal opportunities for all. But the teaching profession have been seriously downgraded by the Nigeria government.

It becomes desirable to examine the possibility of maintaining some kind of balances between teaching profession and other profession. The study will be use to find out what would be done to attract suitable qualified teachers in our society to improve the fallen standard of education.

1.4     BASIC ASSUMPTIONS

It is assumed chat the researcher will encounter some problems or difficulties as well as cooperation during the course of the research. Some of these difficulties include:

1.        Motivation: Teachers are not well motivated so people are reluctant to take teaching profession as a professional job but rather take it as a part time job.  

2.       Poor living condition: The poor attitude of teachers towards discourage people from teaching.

3.        Incentives: If teacher are given the necessary incentives like allowance most people will go into teaching profession. This will tend to create equal professional equality children in this our nation, Nigeria.

4.       Condition of service: it’s is a fact that a worker is at his/her best when satisfied with conditions of service that will elevate the socio economic status of the individual that is lacking profession hence the discontentment and poor output.

5.       Value for Education: If proper value is place on education by the government it will attract person(s) into teaching profession and this value will discourage the reluctant nature of people to taking teaching as a profession.

 1.5    RESEARCH QUESTION

The following questions were raised for the study.

1.       Do teaching profession select gender suitable for the profession?

2.       Does the qualification of the teacher have any effect on the salary of the teachers.  

3.       Does Societal attitudes discourage persons from teaching profession. 

4.       Dilapidated building and poor infrastructure discourage people from taking teaching profession.

 5.      Does environment affect the acceptance of teaching profession.  

1.6     SIGNIFICANT OF THE STUDY

The result of the survey research will obviously reveal the reasons why people are reluctant to take teaching as a profession. This in turn will help identify the main problems faced by teachers, students and the community in general with appropriate solution sought. Out This will help teaching and learning experiences in our society is not encouraged by the treatment given to teachers in the profession.

The study will therefore act as a guide to the educational administrators and government (both federal and state) to pay more attention to teaching profession as teachers are major bridge to follow when grooming our future leaders.

The social attainment or economic status of those expected to teach in our society will expose the reaction person(s) towards teaching profession. Adequate infrastructures should be provided to make teaching profession conducive and both teachers, students and parents

 

1.6     SCOPE OF THE STUDY

This study is limited to Chikun local government area of Kaduna state of Nigeria. The survey is restricted to reasons why people dump teaching jobs for other profession. Giving teaching profession some sense of respect will enhance the teaching and learning abilities of our schools Chikun local government area of Kaduna state of Nigeria. Teachers should be given equal right with other profession to make the profession a standard profession.

1.7     DEFINITION OF TERMS

1. Reasons: The ability that people have to think and to make sensible judgments.

2. Reluctant: Not willing to do something and therefore slow to do it

3. Teaching: The profession of those who give instruction, especially in an elementary or secondary school or in a university.

4. Profession: A paid occupation, especially one that involves prolonged training and a formal qualification

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