In his keynote address, the quintessential Professor of Science Education and an erudite administrator identifies the impediments to quality in the Nigerian Education System. These impediments as the 'big eight'. The big eight, according to him are: policy incoherence and implementation inconsistency; teacher inadequacies both in quality and quantity; funding inadequacies; infrastructural/facilities challenges; curriculum inadequacies; poor curriculum delivery; reading culture; and social vices.
Prof. Okebukola, who is also the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Governing Council of Crawford University, Igbesa, Ogun State, said there is a chain of reaction in the mix of these big eight impediments. According to him, an event kicks off and triggers another, and then another, looping to the original event and the "chain" goes on. Prof Okebukola said if not broken the reaction continues until the original reactants are consumed.
Prof Okebukola said we need to break the deleterious chain reactions and vicious cycles and he made proposals to this effect which he labeled "redemption plan". According to him, they are: redeeming the curriculum-shedding the fat from the curriculum; reformatting the curriculum to respond to jobs of the future; improving the relevance of the curriculum; and enforcing the study of entrepreneurial education at all levels.
Above all, Prof Okebukola advised the appropriate authorities to ensure that all Colleges of Education and Polytechnics aspiring to degree-awarding status should adopt the PhD minimum standard for anybody that would teach in these institutions. He enjoined the National Universities Commission to continue to enforce the minimum standard of a PhD for teaching in the Nigerian University system from the Lecturer grade II position and above.
The conference which was held between September 9 and September 12, 2014 attracted distinguished educators from several Nigerian Universities including Prof. Solomon Olaniyonu, Prof. Ibrahim Kolo, Prof. Modupe Omoegun, Prof. A. Olorundare, Prof. A.A. Adegoke, Prof. O.O. Obiyemi, and Prof. Kayode Alao among others.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. A.B. Okesina, in his welcome address was full of appreciation to the organizers of 5TH CEFWA for choosing UNIOSUN as Conference Venue. He urged the organizers to ensure that more Faculties of Education in Nigeria and West Africa participate in future conferences.