NUC Announces Implementation Of New University Curriculum
The National Universities Commission (NUC) has announced its readiness to begin the implementation of the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards (CCMAS) by September 2023.
The CCMAS document is expected to guide institutions in the creation of curricula for their programmes while bringing necessary innovation into the content and delivery of their programmes to achieve the country’s overall goals of education and training, the News Agency of Nigeria reports.
The Acting Executive Secretary of NUC, Chris Maiyaki, stated during the Stakeholders’ Colloquium on CCMAS in Abuja on Wednesday that the document would reposition Nigerian universities to be among the highest rated in Africa.
Maiyaki stated that CCMAS would make up 70% of the curriculum, with the other 30% being decided by the school.
He expressed the belief that the implementation will help to enhance the future of the education industry.
Maiyaki said: “The role and development of the CCMAS is to ensure commitment in advancing our education and our great nation.
“NUC is primarily dedicated to ensuring quality and global competitiveness of Nigerian universities as well as the graduates we produce.
“The development of the CCMAS went through a painstaking process by bringing experts from our universities comprising of professors, regulatory bodies, Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) and all stakeholders.”
“The CCMAS reflects global initiative that will equip graduates with knowledge and wherewithal that will advance the development of the nation,” he added.
The Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, had urged universities nationwide to make use of the 30 per cent input from the University Senate.
Regardless of the primary discipline, Mamman encouraged colleges to guarantee that learning outcomes, skills, and soft skills were obtained.
He stated that talents must be easily transferable to the academic environment, the country in general, and the global community in general.
The minister said, “There is no better place and time than now to develop a strategy that will guide tertiary institutions particularly universities in their mandate to provide appropriate manpower for the country.
“This is through using a curriculum and applying minimum standards that would guarantee we teach our students in such a way and manner that they would be highly skilled and employable to contribute to national development efforts.
“70 per cent of the total curriculum is captured in the CCMAS while 30 per cent of the curriculum has been ceded to universities’ Senates to build in the uniqueness of their various universities.”
“This principle allows for a good deal of adaptation that suits not only local peculiarities of the universities but provides universities opportunities to carve a niche for themselves in areas of comparative advantage,” he said.
