Federal Ministry of Education pegs JSS1 entry age at 12 in new non-state schools policy

The Federal Ministry of Education last week unveiled a new policy document on Non-State Schools, which explicitly pegs the entry age for pupils seeking admission into Junior Secondary Schools (JSS1) at 12 years, after completing six years of primary education.

Non-State Schools, encompassing independent, private, or non-government institutions, are funded primarily through tuition, donations, and support from various organizations and communities.

According to the new policy, nursery education will span three years.

Children are to be admitted into Nursery One at age three, Nursery Two at four, and a compulsory one-year pre-primary education (Kindergarten) at five, aligning with Section 2(17) of the National Policy on Education (NPE), 2013 Edition.

For basic education, which is a nine-year duration comprising six years of primary and three years of Junior Secondary School (JSS), the policy states, “Children shall be admitted into Primary One when they attain the age of six years. Every child must complete six years of primary education. They shall be admitted into Junior Secondary School (JSS1) when they have completed six (6) years of primary education, at around the age of twelve (12) years.”

The implication of this new policy, if strictly adhered to, is that Nigerian learners would typically attain the age of 18 years before becoming eligible for entrance into higher institutions.

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This aligns with recent controversies surrounding the mandatory age of entry into tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Previously, former Minister of Education, Professor Tahir Mamman, had announced 18 years as the minimum entry requirement, a policy that was later reverted to 16 years by the current minister, Dr. Tunji Alausa.

The policy document also highlighted the increasing role of non-state schools in Nigeria’s education landscape.

The “Nigeria Education Digest 2022,” published by the ministry, revealed that “Non-state schools outnumber state schools in at least 26 states of the federation at the Junior Secondary level, whereas at the primary level, state schools outnumber non-state schools in 19 states of the federation.”

Furthermore, the data indicated a significantly faster growth rate for non-state schools compared to state schools between 2017 and 2022.

Non-state primary schools saw a 31.56 percent increase in number, while state schools grew by only 3.3 percent in the same period.

At the Junior Secondary level, non-state schools grew by 35.06 percent, compared to a mere 6.8 percent growth for state schools.

This trend underscores the expanding influence of private education providers across the country, despite acknowledged variations in quality.