The Federal Government has introduced a National Textbook Ranking System for Primary, Junior Secondary, and Senior Secondary Schools across Nigeria as part of efforts to improve quality assurance and standardisation in the education sector.
The Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, disclosed this in a statement issued on Monday in Abuja by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the Federal Ministry of Education, Folasade Boriowo.
According to the minister, the new initiative is aimed at addressing the growing proliferation of textbooks in schools and ensuring that only high-quality, curriculum-compliant learning materials are approved for classroom use nationwide.
Alausa explained that under the new framework, the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC) will continue to retain its statutory responsibility of approving textbooks for use in Nigerian schools.
However, beyond the approval process, textbooks will now undergo a structured national evaluation and ranking system by NERDC to determine the most suitable and highest-quality options for each subject and level of education.
He said NERDC will establish Standing Subject Committees made up of experts in relevant academic disciplines to carry out detailed reviews of textbooks submitted by publishers.
According to him, these committees will assess the books using clearly defined academic and pedagogical standards before ranking and approving only a limited number of textbooks for classroom use.
The minister noted that the reform is expected to reduce the excessive number of textbooks currently in circulation, a situation he said has often created confusion for teachers, students, and parents.
“The ranking system will introduce transparency, order, and quality assurance into the textbook approval process while aligning Nigeria’s education system with international best practices in instructional material standardisation,” he said.
Alausa further stated that any textbook not ranked under the new system would no longer be allowed for use in Nigerian schools, regardless of whether it had previously received licensing approval.
He added that the Federal Government would engage teachers, school administrators, publishers, and other stakeholders to ensure proper awareness and full compliance with the new policy.
The minister also announced that implementation of the National Textbook Ranking System will begin from the September academic session after the establishment of the Standing Subject Committees and the completion of the evaluation framework.
The government believes the new policy will strengthen learning outcomes, improve teaching quality, and ensure that students across the country have access to standardised and effective educational materials.
