The heart of every profession: Why we must prioritise our teachers

There was a time when teaching was regarded with great respect in Nigeria. Wearing the robe of knowledge powdered with chalk meant walking among the community with pride. Teachers were nation-builders, mentors, and moral compasses. They stood tall in every town, city, and village as symbols of learning, discipline, and service. But somewhere along the […]

There was a time when teaching was regarded with great respect in Nigeria. Wearing the robe of knowledge powdered with chalk meant walking among the community with pride. Teachers were nation-builders, mentors, and moral compasses. They stood tall in every town, city, and village as symbols of learning, discipline, and service. But somewhere along the line, Nigeria dropped the baton. Today, the once noble profession has been reduced to an afterthought, a last resort for the desperate, a career many dread, and few aspire to pursue.

The decline of teaching as a respected profession in Nigeria is not a sudden shift. It is the outcome of decades of systemic negligence, declining educational funding, and the breakdown of the fundamental principles that previously made educators highly esteemed. All you have to do is ask any recent graduate what career paths excite them. Teaching rarely features, and when it does, it’s usually as a stopgap measure while one waits for “something better.”

The root of this decline can be traced to the harsh economic realities facing teachers today. Many public-school teachers nationwide earn salaries that are barely enough to live on, let alone support a family. A newly recruited teacher’s monthly salary in most states ranges from N70,000 to N200,000, contingent on their grade level and qualifications. Even after decades of service, the average teacher retires with little to no savings and a pension that may never come. Some states are still owing months of unpaid salaries. Others delay payments regularly, subjecting teachers to unnecessary suffering and shame.

The fact that these salaries are not only low but also inconsistent makes the situation even more depressing. Irregular payments have become the norm rather than the exception. This has forced many educators to take on side hustles just to survive. The consequences are obvious: teachers who are fatigued, disillusioned, and preoccupied cannot give their all in the classroom distracted. As a result, students suffer, and the education system continues its downward spiral.

Yet, it is not just about the money. The conditions under which Nigerian teachers work are appalling. In many rural schools, teachers walk long distances daily to get to classrooms with broken furniture, leaking roofs, and no teaching materials. Some teach hundreds of pupils crammed into classrooms built for 40. Many do so without access to potable water, electricity, or functioning toilets. There are still teachers conducting lessons under trees or in uncompleted buildings across several states in 2025. How do you expect dignity in a profession when the environment strips its practitioners of every ounce of it?

University lecturers do not fare any better at the tertiary level. Their tale is one of dissatisfaction, unfulfilled promises, and strikes that ultimately accomplish very little. ASUU has become synonymous with industrial action, not because they enjoy strikes, but because that has become the only language the government seems to understand. Although agreements have been reached in some of these strikes lately, implementation is typically sluggish. Lecturers go unpaid for months, their research is not adequately supported, and their working conditions are deplorable. Some of the brightest minds have left the country, not out of betrayal, but in a bid for survival and academic fulfillment. Nigeria loses every single time.

The tragedy of all of this is that it affects not just the profession but also every aspect of our country’s development. We jeopardise the quality of education when our brightest minds stay away from teaching. We deprive kids of the guidance and excellence they are entitled to when they are taught by worn-out, underpaid, and underappreciated teachers. We create citizens who are unprepared for the future when education turns into a transactional process rather than a transformative one.

There are people who still want to teach those who feel called to it, who burn with a passion to impart knowledge and shape lives. But passion alone cannot pay rent. Dedication cannot put food on the table or settle hospital bills. In a country where the cost of living has outpaced minimum wage, the question must be asked: how do we expect teachers to survive, let alone thrive?

Unfortunately, society itself has not helped. These days, teaching is frequently seen as a career for people who couldn’t “make it” somewhere else. The typical parent would prefer that their child pursues a career in medicine, law, or engineering rather than teaching. The respect that was once accorded to educators is further undermined by this subtly harmful social narrative. The profession, in the eyes of many, has become too humble for aspiration.

But it doesn’t have to remain this way. The revival of the teaching profession in Nigeria is both urgent and possible. It begins with fair and decent compensation. Teachers deserve to be paid not just in line with national living standards, but as a recognition of the essential role they play. Prompt salary payments and better retirement packages should be non-negotiable. No teacher should have to beg for what they are owed.

In addition to paying salaries, the government must invest on instructional resources and school infrastructure. A well-resourced classroom is a motivator. Providing electricity, clean water, and digital tools in schools is not a luxury but a necessity. Prioritising professional development is also necessary. Teachers need ongoing training and support, not just during their initial induction, but throughout their careers.

We also need to rethink how society celebrates teachers. Excellence in teaching ought to be publicly and nationally recognised. Scholarships for aspiring teachers, fast-track promotions for outstanding performers, and public recognition can go a long way in restoring pride in the profession. The media must also assist in shifting the perception of teaching from one of a last-resort profession to presenting it as the noble, transformative work that it truly is.

Every nation’s foundation is its educational system. We are essentially destroying our own future if we keep treating our teachers like disposable resources. Strong, knowledge-based economies have been built by nations that have made significant investments in their educational systems. Nigeria must follow suit.

As we debate reforms in other sectors, we must not forget that we are all the products of teachers. No doctor, engineer, assembly member, senator, governor, minister, vice president or president emerged without a teacher. We lose everything if we lose our teachers. The dignity of this honourable profession needs to be restored. The classroom must once again become a place of pride. And those who stand at the front of it, molding minds and nurturing dreams, must be honoured not merely with words but also with action.