STRENGTHENING QUALITY ASSURANCE IN CHEMISTRY EDUCATION IN NIGERIA: STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVEMENT

Abstract

The scientific and technological development of a nation is completely dependent on
the quality of its education as, education is known for the critical role it plays in the
pursuit and attainment of scientific and technological advancement of a nation. The
quality of education offered to the citizens of a nation will definitely reflect on the
output of the products of such education system since no nation can rise above the
quality of its education. Nigeria is not advanced in scientific and technological
development due to the quality of (science) education it offers. This may be adduced
to several factors identified by education experts among which include a weak
curriculum, inadequate number of trained chemistry teachers, poorly trained ones,
lack of infrastructural facilities and equipment and resources, poor utilization of
government funds for improvement of all of the factors mentioned earlier. That there
is think-tank for quality assurance in science education is not in doubt, what needs to
be improved upon is the process cum application mechanisms. To reverse this
negative trend and sustain this all important development, the quality of
science/chemistry education offered must be scrutinized properly and sustained
through effective monitoring and supervision with the aid of quality assurance and
mechanism. This paper explores strategies to enhance the quality assurance of
chemistry education in Nigeria through various mechanisms such as curriculum
review by incorporating modern techniques and technologies, emphasizing
practical learning experiences; improving on teacher professional development;
utilization of digital tools; timely assessment and prompt evaluation; accreditation
and quality control; student engagement and motivation.