Education stakeholders have expressed fresh concerns over the Federal Government's proposal to merge Junior Secondary School (JSS) and Senior Secondary School (SSS) into a single six-year secondary education structure, arguing that the reform may fail to address the root causes of Nigeria's education challenges.
The proposal, championed by the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, is intended to improve student retention and reduce the number of children who drop out before completing secondary education.
The minister has argued that separating JSS and SSS has created administrative bottlenecks and contributed to overcrowded junior secondary schools while many senior secondary schools remain underutilised.
However, analysts featured in a Vanguard report contend that restructuring the school system alone will not solve Nigeria's education crisis.
They argue that the proposal risks overlooking more pressing issues such as inadequate funding, teacher shortages, poor learning facilities, insecurity and rising poverty.
One of the major criticisms is that merging the two levels of secondary education could weaken existing administrative structures without necessarily improving learning outcomes.
Critics say separate leadership for junior and senior secondary schools currently provides better supervision, accountability and career progression for education administrators.
Stakeholders also questioned the government's emphasis on structural reforms instead of addressing classroom realities.
They noted that thousands of qualified teachers remain unemployed despite widespread vacancies in public schools, while many classrooms continue to struggle with overcrowding and shortages of learning materials.
The article further argues that Nigeria's education challenges extend beyond school structure.
Economic hardship, insecurity, child labour, early marriage in some communities and limited access to nearby secondary schools continue to push millions of children out of the education system despite existing policies.
Supporters of the government's proposal maintain that the reform could improve transition rates between primary and secondary education by eliminating unnecessary administrative barriers.
According to the Ministry of Education, Nigeria has about 80,000 public primary schools but only around 15,000 junior secondary schools, creating a major gap that contributes to school dropouts.
The proposal will still require approval from the National Council on Education (NCE), Nigeria's highest education policy-making body, before any nationwide implementation can begin.
The council is expected to review the recommendation alongside input from state governments and other education stakeholders.
Observers say whichever decision is eventually taken, meaningful improvements in Nigeria's education sector will depend not only on policy changes but also on increased investment in teachers, infrastructure, school security, technology and broader economic reforms that enable more children to remain in school.