Professional Evaluation of the National Mathematics Curriculum for Basic Education in Nigeria

The National Mathematics Curriculum for Basic Education determines the mathematical knowledge foundation for millions of Nigerian pupils, and professional evaluation of its current adequacy in the context of PISA and TIMSS international benchmarks and twenty-first century skills requirements provides critical input for curriculum revision. This study conducted a professional evaluation of the Basic Education Mathematics Curriculum implemented across six purposively sampled states representing all geopolitical zones. A mixed evaluation methodology was applied, combining curriculum document analysis against TIMSS grade-band frameworks, achievement data analysis using NECO Basic Certificate Examination trends from 2019 to 2023, structured interviews with 20 mathematics curriculum specialists, and focus groups with 30 primary and JSS mathematics teachers. Curriculum analysis showed that problem-solving and mathematical reasoning strands, prioritised in international curricula, were minimally represented in the Nigerian basic education mathematics curriculum. Data handling and statistics content was absent from Primary 1 through 4. Real-world application tasks were present in fewer than 18.0 percent of curriculum activities. NECO mathematics pass rates trended from 49.3 percent in 2019 to 46.7 percent in 2023, suggesting no improvement despite recent curriculum revisions. The study concludes that the current curriculum underemphasises reasoning, application, and statistics. Recommendations include a comprehensive curriculum revision incorporating problem-solving as a core strand, data literacy integration, and internationally benchmarked assessment alignment.

Keywords: Basic Education, Mathematics Curriculum, curriculum evaluation, TIMSS, national curriculum