The 6 Hard Nuts of Being an African Teacher

6 Reasons Why Teaching in Africa is a Hard Nut to Crack

Being a teacher in Africa is one of the toughest jobs on earth. Had teaching not been a calling, a lot of African teachers wouldn’t had opted for the profession.

In Africa, very many factors make teaching a detestable profession that school children would be ready to scream ‘God forbid’ a million times anytime someone reminds them of pursuing a career in teaching. This ugly scenario might be same across the globe, but I think it’s more pronounced here in Africa.

Here are 6 of those factors that have led credence to this…

** Teachers are poorly paid here in Africa. Some mischievous souls would even suggest teachers go without pay as their reward is possibly in the afterlife. Imagine the psychological effect of teaching with little or no commensurate reward; it simply saps the inner strength of the teacher.

** There is a societal disdain for teachers in our own part of the world. The money-bag illiterate Politicians and others with ill-gotten wealth have more regard and are accorded better status than a university professor. Teachers’ work are not being appreciated.

** The learners’ attention has been diverted to entertainment, undue quest for ill-gotten wealth etc. As a result, a lot of school children show no genuine interest in ‘wasting’ their time learning for years while they can make money outside schooling. This makes teaching difficult for teachers in Africa.

** African leaders would rather invest money on beauty pageant where young ladies come to showcase their nudity and win millions of dollars, than give academic scholarship to deserving school children especially those in the ‘Brain without Books’ bracket.

** Technology-driven education is still at a yet-to-develop level here in Africa. Tech education tools are helping teachers across the globe to make teaching more interactive, engaging, fun and easier for both teachers and learners; but the typical African teacher is still struggling to do all things for himself and the school children, even in areas where technology should have helped.

** Too much workload on teachers. In some parts of Africa, an average teacher is meant to teach 4 to 5 subjects across three or more classes. She would write lesson notes, mark students’ homework and classwork, attend to the individual needs of over 30 children in her class, and produce mid-term and termly results, in addition to other extra commitments and pressure from the heads. In all these, nothing reflects in her remuneration.

** Conclusion:

The job of an average African teacher today can be equated to a humanitarian service. In spite of the challenges they go through to educate Africa and her children, they nonetheless keep doing that great job.

But, the truth is that we cannot continue like this and still hope to bequeath a better African future to our children. A situation where school children see teachers as the filth of the world, as well as show no interest in carving a niche in what they see as a forbidden career path, should be a thing of concern to African leaders and other stakeholders.

Africa has no future bright if her educational fortunes collapse; and collapse it will if nothing is done urgently to remedy the ugly plight of the African teacher. The work begins now…

          “When I am lifted, I will lift the world” --- The Teacher’s Voice