1 STANDARD OF EDUCATION IN NIGERIA: THE ROLE OF TEACHERS By Dr Abigail Osuafor Department of Science Education Nnamdi Azikiwe University Awka, Anambra State. Abstract This chapter started by presenting the views held by different educationists and scholars on the concept of education. It went further to discuss standard of education in Nigeria pointing out that since standards are relative and varies according to people’s perspectives, minimum standards which should be based on the national education goals must be established for the different educational levels for uniformity and assessment. The concept of teacher and teaching were also looked at. The role of teachers in maintaining the standard of education in Nigeria was discussed and also the roles of other stakeholders in education to enable teachers discharge their duties effectively were briefly addressed. The challenges teachers encounter while performing their duties and strategies to help them overcome these challenges and discharge their duties creditably were also outlined. Finally, the chapter concluded that in as much as the quality and standard of education lie very much on the activities of the teachers, teachers need the support and encouragement of other stakeholders in education in order to perform to the best of their ability and expectations. Keywords: Education, Standards in Education, Teacher, Teaching. Introduction This chapter deals with the role of the teacher in relation to the educational standard in Nigeria. The link and relevance of this topic can be better articulated in the words of Ukeje in Ekpunobi (1996) which stated thus: there is, of course, a direct relationship between the quality of the teaching personnel and the quality of the educational process: in fact, the defects of the present Nigerian educational system are partly the result of poor teachers. The real value of a sound educational principle lies in its effective implementation; and, in the final analysis, it is the teacher who translates theory into practice (p.94). The topic will be discussed under the following sub-headings: • The concepts of Education, Standard in Education, teacher and teaching