Full list of subjects as govment make changes to academic curriculum for basic, senior secondary and technical education

Di Nigeria Ministry of Education don announce major review for di national curriculum wey pupils and student go dey study from basic class to senior class.

Honourable Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa wit di Minister of State for Education, Professor Suwaiba Said Ahmad, say di reform na to to reduce subject overload for students.

Di ministry say di review go also promote skill development, and position Nigerian education wit global best practices.

Na Wednesday 3 September 2025, di ministry bin announce say dem dey reduce di number of subjects across all di levels.

Dem arrive at dis review afta di ministry bin consult wit di Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), Waec, Neco, NBTE, Nabteb, and oda stakeholders wey get mouth for di curriculum mata.

Dr. Alausa say di new curriculum go take effect from di 2025/26 academic year and e go help both students and teachers.

"From now pupils for Primary one to three go now take minimum of 9 and maximum of 10 subjects; Primary 4 to 6 go study 11 to 13 subjects; Junior Secondary School (JSS 1-3) go take 12 to 14 subjects," e tok.

"Senior Secondary School (SSS) go retain eight to nine subjects, wit sharper focus on five core areas: Humanities, Sciences, Business, one trade subject, as well as di core and compulsory general courses."

Dem say students go only offer three Nigerian language subjects - Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba.

"Trade subjects for non-technical schools don reduce from ova 30 to six practical areas."

Di subjects na: Solar PV Installation and Maintenance, Fashion Design and Garment Making, Livestock Farming, Beauty and Cosmetology, Computer Hardware and GSM Repairs, and Horticulture and Crop Production.

Di ministry add say Nabteb go now administer 28 trade subjects for technical colleges while di Waec and Neco subjects don dey revised to show di new trades.

Wetin be di new academic curriculum

Nigeria govment bin introduce di new revised academic curriculum across all level of basic, senior secondary and technical education for di kontri to reduce education burden.

Di Federal Ministry of Education wey announce di revised curriculum say di aim na to reduce content overload and create more learning time for students.

For di statement wey di Minister of State for Education Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad issue last week, she say although pupils and students go now take lesser subjects, however, di koko na say dem don improve di content to allow for deeper learning.

Dis review dey come for time wen di West Africa Examination Council (Waec), di body wey dey in charge of conducting di Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE) bin record di worst result performance in five years.

How di new curriculum be

Prof. Ahmad say dem collabo wit all key stakeholders, wey include di Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), National Senior Secondary Education Commission (NSSEC), National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), and relevant departments within di ministry to carry out di review.

Although, di ministry no tok wen di new curriculum go come into effect, Prof. Ahmad however, say dem go implement di revised curriculum wit strict monitoring to guarantee effective adoption and smooth transition for schools nationwide.

One Educationist and Researcher Dr Harmony Mark-Ewa wey follow BBC News Pidgin rok on di impact wey di revised curriculum go get on education, first hail di initiative as good development.

She say although govment neva outline how di revised curriculum go take work, as dem neva bring out blueprint for di policy, e good as e be like say dem don centralise di curriculum on wetin di children really need.

"Curriculum go dey more specific and more focused. For example, in terms of employments, di teachers go dey hired based on di specifics on wetin di curriculum dey point towards now, and students go get ample time to choose and dey more exposed fully to di different subjects wey dey di curriculum," Mark-Ewa add.

NERDC for 2014 bin launch revised nine-year Basic Education Curriculum (BEC).

Di BEC bin comprise of 20 subjects, wey include new subjects like Basic Science, Basic Technology and Computer Studies/IT

For 2024. di former Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman bin announce plans for new secondary school curriculum.

Since den, different reforms don take place. for 2024, di Ministry of Education bin introduce 15 new trades into di Basic Education curriculum, wey dem implement for January 2025. Di former minister bin say dis new subjects na to foster practical skills and enhance di employability of graduates from primary and junior secondary schools.

Dis trades bin include Basic Digital Literacy (IT and Robotics), plumbing, event decoration, solar installation, and garment-making, wey dey for sectors like construction, hospitality, technology, and agriculture.

According to Prof. Mamman, dem go expose students to different occupational subjects but di students go later select one or two trades dem go specialise in.

For 2025, di Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa bin propose transition to 12-year basic education system for Nigeria, as e advocate a shift from di current 9-3-4 model to 12-4 structure.

For di 2025 Extraordinary National Council of Education meeting wey hold for Abuja, Alausa bin say di need for dis reform na to align Nigeria education system wit global standards.

E bin dey of di position say di 12-year basic education model go ensure continuous, uninterrupted curriculum, wey go promote better standardisation and fostering quality assurance for di education system.

"E dey important to know say while di 9-3-4 system of education get im advantages, e also get disadvantages, like di need for students to work in order to further dia education.

Breakdown of subjects wey schools go dey offer from basic to senior classes

Primary 1-3

Primary 4-6

Junior Secondary School

Senior Secondary School ((Students to select 8 to 9 subjects only)