Ahead of 2025 World Teachers’ Day, the Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools (ASUSS) has called for collaborations among teachers and other stakeholders to address the challenges facing Nigeria’s education sector.

The National President of ASUSS, Comrade Sola Adigun, in a statement Friday who disclosed the theme of this year’s celebration, “Recasting Teaching as a Collaborative Profession,” stressed the urgent need for unity in tackling educational challenges.

He said, “Teaching has never been a job for lone rangers. The progress of a child is determined not just by the teacher, but by parents, policymakers, communities, and government.”

He commended the Federal Ministry of Education for including ASUSS’ representatives in the expanded Governing Council of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), and praised the tuition-free Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) programme as a model of effective partnership between policy and practice.

He acknowledged states like Ekiti and Bayelsa for leading the way in providing tuition-free technical education and applauded governments that respect teachers’ rights to associate freely with ASUSS.

World Teachers’ Day is celebrated globally on October 5 to honour educators and spotlight the challenges facing the profession.

He however expressed concerns over the failure of 16 states to implement the Harmonised Retirement Age for Teachers in Nigeria Act, 2022, despite existing court rulings, warning that such neglect undermines collaborative efforts in the education sector development.

Adigun also criticised the rushed implementation of the new 9-year Basic Education Curriculum, pointing out inadequate teacher training and resources. “Ambition without preparation breeds failure. Where are the trained teachers? Where are the teaching tools?” he questioned.

Other pressing issues facing the education sector, according to Adigun, include examination malpractices, poor welfare, deteriorating infrastructure, and insecurity in schools, saying the problems require collaborative solutions.

He therefore called on states that have yet to establish Senior Secondary Education Boards to do so promptly, recruit qualified teachers, and prioritise teachers’ welfare, while also renewing the demand for ASUSS’s trade union certificate, which has been approved for 17 years but remains unissued.