Olushola Omogbehin
The Federal Government has scrapped the 2022 National Language Policy which mandated the use of indigenous languages as the medium of instruction in Nigerian schools and reinstated English as the primary language of teaching and learning from pre-primary to tertiary levels.
Speaking on Wednesday at the 2025 Language in Education International Conference, organised by the British Council in Abuja, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa said Nigerian children have been performing poorly in public examinations because they were taught in the mother tongue.
According to the minister, the decision to cancel the policy followed an elaborate data analysis and showing that the use of mother tongue as the primary medium of instruction had negatively affected learning in the country as evidenced in abysmal performance in public exams as a result of being taught in their mother tongue.
“We have seen a mass failure rate in WAEC, NECO and JAMB in certain geo-political zones of the country, and those are the ones that adopted this mother tongue in an over-subscribed manner.
“This is about evidence-based governance. English now stands as the medium of instruction from the pre-primary, primary, junior secondary, senior secondary and to the tertiary education level.
“Using the mother tongue language in Nigeria for the past 15 years has literally destroyed education in certain regions. We have to talk about evidence, not emotions,” Alausa explained.
He explained that a national performance review, revealed that student taught in local languages recorded higher failure rates in national examinations and struggled with basic English comprehension.
“The national policy on language has been cancelled. English now stands as the medium of instruction across all levels of education,” he said.
However, the called on scholars and stakeholders with contrary evidence to present verifiable data because according to him, government remains open to dialogue based on research and measurable outcomes.
The Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmed, said the government is investing in teacher training and literacy reforms to address foundational learning challenges.
“We are designing a training package for teachers focused on literacy and numeracy. This specifically targets teachers from pre-primary to Primary Three, equipping them with effective methods for teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic,” she said.
Praising Nigeria’s renewed focus on educational quality and inclusivity, British Council Country Director, Donna McGowan, reaffirmed the council’s collaboration with the Ministry of Education in the ongoing reform efforts.
“We’re committed to working hand-in-hand with the ministry. Our collaboration spans teacher professional development, school leadership, and language proficiency enhancement,” McGowan said.
