- NUC says ASUU’s claims of no official communication from NUC to the Universities on the review of the Benchmark Minimum Academic Standard (BMAS) is false.
- They added Several virtual and on-site meetings were held to intimate them of the curriculum review and provide them with updates from time to time.
- The curriculum review process started in 2018 with experts on various subjects in Nigerian universities and was further forwarded to other experts in Nigerian universities for their input, according to the NUC.
Nigeria’s National Universities Commission (NUC) has warned the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to stop misleading Nigerians about the new varsity curriculum.
This was disclosed in a statement by the NUC’s Deputy Executive Secretary, Academics, Dr Noel Saliu reacting to claims that by ASUU after they rejected the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards prepared by the National Universities Commission (NUC), accusing it of imposition.
The NUC states that all universities were carried along in the development of the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards.
False Allegations
The NUC chief revealed that the ASUU’s claims of no official communication from NUC to the Universities on the review of the Benchmark Minimum Academic Standard (BMAS) were false, they said:
- “Vice-Chancellors can attest to the fact that the commission has been communicating with them on the issue over the last five years. In addition, several virtual and on-site meetings were held to intimate them of the curriculum review and provide them with updates from time to time.
- ” The claim that there is no evidence to show that the universities were involved in the true sense of revision of the BMAS development and the subsequent implementation of the CCMAS in the university is also far from the truth.”
Curriculum review
They also revealed that the curriculum review process started in 2018 with experts on various subjects in Nigerian universities producing the draft documents, citing that the draft was further forwarded to other experts in Nigerian universities for their input.
- ” Comments received from universities that responded formed part of the working documents forwarded to the various curriculum review panels.
They added that when the initial drafts of the CCMAS were ready, they were also circulated amongst Nigerian academics, and their inputs were synthesized and incorporated into the respective programs, acknowledging that the process of getting and incorporating inputs from Nigerian Universities had been the tradition of NUC since 1989, and had not faltered.
NUC added that it had informed universities from the beginning of the exercise that it would provide for 70% of the minimum course requirements for graduation in Nigerian universities and that the universities were expected to make up the remaining 30%.
- ” The commission did not arbitrarily arrive at this ratio. The NUC had in previous minimum standards documents, made provision for 100% curriculum requirements to Nigerian universities.
- ” It is instructive to note that in a retreat with Vice-Chancellors of Nigerian Universities in 2017, the NUC proposed to the universities a 50/50 NUC/Universities Curriculum Provision.
- ” This was rejected as the universities felt that the action was drastic and that the proposal should be gradually implemented; they proposed 80:20 NUC/ University contribution to the curriculum.
- ” However, the NUC during the comprehensive curriculum review, decided to adopt a 70:30 NUC/University ratio for the curriculum contents,”
Backstory
Nairametrics reported yesterday that The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) rejected the Core Curriculum Minimum Academic Standards prepared by the National Universities Commission (NUC), accusing it of imposition.
The union said it was nightmarish, a threat to quality university education, and an erosion of powers of the university Senate in Nigerian universities.
ASUU explained that its reaction followed several complaints it received on the threats posed by the CCMAS to quality university education and the erosion of powers of the university Senate in Nigerian universities.
They warned that it was inexplicable that NUC pre-packaged 70% CCMAS contents were being imposed on the Nigerian University System (NUS), adding that university Senates, who are statutorily responsible for academic program development, were left to work on only 30%.
It stressed that there were growing concerns about the numerous shortcomings and gross inadequacies of the CCMAS documents.
