Academic Staff Development in Nigerian Polytechnics: Issues and Challenges

Abstract

In Nigeria, Polytechnics have played relatively vital role in the growth of industries and local technology. However, the full potential of Polytechnics as the seed crop of industrial development and socio-economic growth had not been fully harnessed. Even though there are numerous Polytechnic institutions in Nigeria, the capacity to deliver has been constrained by a number of challenges to academic staff development. This paper discusses eleven challenges to achieving and sustaining academic staff development in Nigerian Polytechnics: (1) Improper Assessment of Needs ; (2) Policy; (3) Funding; (4) Lack of training infrastructure and problems of capacity building; (5) Lack of administrative willingness and capacity to drive academic staff development; (6) Ethnicity; (7) Funding; (8) Corruption and Nepotism; (9) Strikes; (10) Technology/ Energy problems; and (11) Low Level of interest in research/development of local initiatives. The paper recommends that a strategic framework for academic staff development should be put in place with a view to enhancing continuous improvement of teaching and learning processes of academic staff in line with global trends.