Enhancing Social Engagement in Nigeria through Teachers' Professional Development: A Case of TRCN

The quality of teachers is an important factor in the achievement of educational goals, and this is why Wokocha (2013) asserts that the quality of the teacher could be determined through intellectual competence, mastery of content, teaching experience, skills and dissemination of knowledge. Thus, one of the best ways to raise the quality of teachers is by building their capacity through Mandatory Continuous Professional Development Programmes, (MCPD). Social engagement through teacher education and training has been one of the areas of emphasis of the Teacher Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN). This paper uses secondary data analysis to discuss the activities of Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria. It examines how social dynamism and globalization demand emerging skills from education and educators. It argues that the new reality requires the need to incorporate new skills into teaching including social issues to encourage deeper connection to social engagement issues. It concludes that teacher education and training is one of the effective ways of ensuring social engagements. Using the experience of the TRCN, the paper shares some strategies and skills that can be employed to inculcate social engagement in teacher training and education. [For the full proceedings, see ED613257.]