The Council was established by Decree 31 of 1993 (now Act CAP T3 of 2004). Several decades of agitation by professional teachers and other stakeholders for the establishment of a regulatory agency led to the enactment of the Act. The Act in section 1(1) charged the Council with the following responsibilities:

  1. Determining who are teachers for the purpose of this Act.
  2. Determining what standards of knowledge and skills are to be attained by persons seeking to become registered as teachers under this Act and raising those standards from time to time as circumstances may permit.
  3. Securing in accordance with the provisions of this Act the establishment and maintenance of a register of teachers and the publication from time to time of the lists of those persons.
  4. Regulating and controlling the teaching profession in all its aspects and ramifications.
  5. Classifying from time to time members of the teaching profession according to their level of training and qualification.
  6. Performing through the Council established under this Act the functions conferred on it by this Act.

In accordance with the TRCN legal provisions and conventions common to the professional regulatory agencies, the Council is systematically implementing the following programmes and activities:

  • Registration and licensing of qualified teachers.
  • Accreditation, monitoring and supervision of the courses and programmes of teacher training institutions in Nigeria to ensure that they meet national and international minimum standards. The institutions include the Colleges of Education, Faculties and Institutes of Education in Nigerian universities, Schools of Education in the Polytechnics, and the National Teachers Institute.
  • Organisation of Internship Schemes for fresh Education graduates to equip them with the necessary professional skills before licensing them for full professional practice.
  • Conduct of professional examinations and interviews to determine teachers suitable for registration.
  • Execution of Mandatory Continuing Professional Education (MCPE) to guarantee that teachers keep abreast of developments in the theory and practice of the profession.
  • Organisation of Annual Conference of Registered Teachers which is the first of its kind in Nigeria and intended to unite all teachers irrespective of social class or the level of education system to which they belong.
  • Publication of a register of qualified and licensed teachers in Nigeria
  • Enforcement of ethical conduct among teachers and the prosecution of erring ones using the Teachers Tribunal which has powers under law to award punishments.
  • Prosecution in the law court of unqualified persons performing the job of teachers in contravention of the TRCN Act section 17(2).

12 Oda Street,
Off Aminu Kano Crescent,
Wuse 2, Abuja,
Nigeria.