After studying this guide, the learner should be able to:
Teaching is the planned, purposeful, and professional activity of guiding learners to acquire knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, and acceptable ways of life. It is more than talking in front of a class; it involves organizing learning experiences, responding to learner needs, and helping learners achieve specific outcomes.
| Traditional View | Modern View |
|---|---|
| Teaching is mainly classroom instruction and transmission of knowledge. | Teaching is the process of causing learners to learn meaningfully. |
| The teacher is the main source of knowledge. | The teacher is a facilitator, guide, planner, manager, counsellor, and evaluator. |
| Emphasis is on content delivery. | Emphasis is on learner understanding, application, values, and skill development. |
Exam Points
Ethics of teaching refers to the moral principles, professional values, and standards of conduct that guide teachers in their relationship with learners, colleagues, parents, school authorities, and society.
Key Takeaway: A teacher's ethical conduct influences student trust, school discipline, public respect for the profession, and the moral tone of society.
A teacher is a trained and certified person who possesses the knowledge, skills, values, and professional competence required to guide learners toward intellectual, moral, social, and practical development.
| Role | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Instructional expert | Plans, guides, teaches, evaluates, records, and reports learning progress. |
| Manager | Organizes the classroom, maintains order, sets rules, and creates a safe learning environment. |
| Counsellor | Observes learner behaviour, understands individual needs, supports learners, and encourages positive adjustment. |
Exam Points
A profession is an occupation that requires specialized knowledge, prolonged training, certified competence, ethical standards, and service to society. Examples include teaching, medicine, law, engineering, finance, and the military.
Teaching qualifies as a profession because teachers undergo specialized training, possess a body of professional knowledge, serve a major social purpose, belong to professional bodies, are guided by codes of conduct, and participate in continuous professional development.
Professional teachers study education courses such as sociology of education, educational psychology, guidance and counselling, measurement and evaluation, educational administration, curriculum and instruction, philosophy of education, and history of education.
Exam Points
A professional code of conduct is a set of rules and standards that define acceptable behaviour for members of a profession. In teaching, it protects learners, guides teachers, and improves public confidence in the profession.
Education is the lifelong development of the learner in knowledge, values, skills, character, and social usefulness. It may be viewed as a process, a product, and a discipline.
| Type | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Formal education | Structured school-based education with curriculum, examination, and certification. | Primary school, secondary school, university. |
| Informal education | Learning acquired through family, culture, peers, community, and daily life. | Learning norms, language, trade habits, and social values. |
| Non-formal education | Organized learning outside the regular school system. | Adult education, evening classes, extra-mural lessons. |
Exam Points
Pre-colonial education was mainly traditional and informal. It prepared learners for life through vocational training, character formation, respect for elders, cultural transmission, and participation in community life.
Colonial education was shaped largely by missionary activity and British influence. The system emphasized literacy, religious instruction, clerical work, and training of converts. However, it was criticized for not fully addressing Nigerian social, cultural, and economic needs.
After independence in 1960, Nigeria began to search for a more national and relevant educational system. Educational conferences, commissions, and policies were introduced to address access, national unity, manpower needs, teacher training, and development.
The Ashby Commission was established in 1959 to investigate Nigeria's higher education needs for twenty years. Its recommendations contributed to the expansion of universities, teacher education, and higher education institutions in Nigeria.
The National Policy on Education provides the philosophy, goals, and structure of Nigerian education. It views education as an instrument for national development, social change, unity, individual self-fulfillment, and functional citizenship.
Education is a major driver of national development. It contributes to economic productivity, social progress, political awareness, technological innovation, human development, and global cooperation.
| Area of Development | Contribution of Education |
|---|---|
| Economic | Provides skills, improves productivity, reduces poverty, and supports innovation. |
| Social | Improves health, equality, tolerance, social cohesion, and quality of life. |
| Political | Develops informed citizens, participation, accountability, and democratic culture. |
| Technological | Promotes creativity, science, problem-solving, and sustainable solutions. |
| Human | Builds confidence, self-reliance, life skills, and informed decision-making. |
Key Takeaway: Education is not only a personal benefit; it is a national investment in development, stability, productivity, and civilization.
Learning theories explain how people acquire knowledge, attitudes, skills, and behaviours. The material emphasizes behavioural, cognitive, and sociocultural perspectives.
Behaviourism focuses on observable behaviour and environmental influence. It emphasizes stimulus, response, reinforcement, punishment, conditioning, and habit formation.
| Theorist | Theory | Core Idea | Classroom Application |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ivan Pavlov | Classical conditioning | Learning by association between stimuli and responses. | Create positive emotional associations with school and learning. |
| John B. Watson | Stimulus-response theory | Environment shapes behaviour through stimuli and responses. | Use structured classroom cues and consistent responses. |
| B. F. Skinner | Operant conditioning | Behaviour is modified by reinforcement, punishment, or extinction. | Reward desired behaviour and reduce undesirable behaviour. |
| Albert Bandura | Social learning theory | Learning occurs through observation, imitation, and modelling. | Teachers should model the behaviours they expect learners to imitate. |
| Edward Thorndike | Law of effect | Responses followed by satisfaction are strengthened. | Use feedback and success experiences to reinforce learning. |
| Clark Hull | Drive-reduction theory | Behaviour is motivated by reduction of needs or drives. | Recognize learner motivation, needs, and readiness. |
The cognitive perspective emphasizes mental processes such as memory, thinking, reasoning, language, and problem-solving. Piaget described stages of cognitive development, while Bruner emphasized scaffolding and active construction of knowledge.
The sociocultural perspective, associated with Vygotsky, emphasizes learning through social interaction, culture, language, collaboration, and guided support. The zone of proximal development refers to the gap between what a learner can do alone and what the learner can do with help.
Exam Points
Child development refers to physical, cognitive, emotional, and social growth from birth to adolescence.
| Stage | Age Range | Main Developmental Features |
|---|---|---|
| Infancy | 0-1 year | Crawling, walking, attachment, early problem-solving. |
| Toddlerhood | 1-3 years | Language growth, social skills, emotional regulation. |
| Early childhood | 4-6 years | Memory, problem-solving, friendship, cooperation. |
| Middle childhood | 7-10 years | Fine motor skills, reading, writing, teamwork, leadership. |
| Adolescence | 11-18 years | Puberty, abstract thinking, identity formation. |
Adolescence is the transition from childhood to adulthood, usually around ages 10-19. It involves physical changes, emotional sensitivity, cognitive growth, identity formation, peer influence, and increasing independence.
Key Takeaway: Teachers must understand learners' developmental stages to select age-appropriate content, methods, discipline strategies, and support systems.
Idealism emphasizes ideas, mind, spirit, truth, and moral development. It supports education that cultivates intellectual and ethical virtues. The curriculum often emphasizes philosophy, literature, history, arts, and moral education. The teacher is a model of wisdom and virtue.
Realism emphasizes objective reality, observation, evidence, facts, and rational thought. It supports subject-centered curriculum, science, mathematics, experimentation, demonstration, and objective assessment.
Pragmatism emphasizes experience, action, problem-solving, flexibility, democracy, and learning by doing. It supports project-based learning, inquiry, collaboration, practical skills, and real-life problem-solving.
| Philosophy | Curriculum Emphasis | Teacher Role | Teaching Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Idealism | Liberal arts, moral education, philosophy, literature. | Moral and intellectual guide. | Dialogue, lecture, reflection, Socratic questioning. |
| Realism | Science, mathematics, factual subjects, empirical knowledge. | Subject expert and structured guide. | Observation, demonstration, experiment, objective testing. |
| Pragmatism | Experience-centered and problem-centered curriculum. | Facilitator of learning experiences. | Projects, inquiry, collaboration, learning by doing. |
Exam Points
Neoliberalism is an economic and political ideology that promotes market principles such as competition, privatization, accountability, efficiency, and individual choice. In education, it appears in school choice, standardized testing, performance-based funding, public-private partnerships, and increased private-sector involvement.
Globalization connects nations through trade, culture, communication, and technology. In education, it promotes international mobility, global benchmarks, digital learning, open educational resources, video conferencing, collaborative learning, and global citizenship.
Key Takeaway: Education systems must use technology and globalization wisely while protecting equity, inclusion, culture, and the public good.
Emile Durkheim is one of the founding figures of sociology. He emphasized the scientific study of social facts, social cohesion, religion, education, and deviance.
Exam Point: Durkheim saw education as a social institution that promotes social cohesion, moral regulation, and integration into society.
Talcott Parsons viewed society as a system of interrelated parts that work together to maintain stability and order. Each institution, including education, performs functions that help society survive and adapt.
| Function | Meaning | Educational Relevance |
|---|---|---|
| Adaptation | System adjusts to its environment. | Schools prepare learners for economic and social realities. |
| Goal Attainment | System defines and achieves goals. | Education helps society achieve national goals. |
| Integration | System maintains coordination and unity. | Schools promote shared values, discipline, and citizenship. |
| Latency or Pattern Maintenance | System preserves norms and values. | Education transmits culture, values, and social expectations. |
Parsons is criticized for overemphasizing stability, neglecting conflict and inequality, and presenting social systems in a highly abstract way. However, his theory remains useful for understanding how institutions contribute to social order.