e-learning to redefine Nigeria's educational sector

To make Nigeria’s quest for a place among the 20 economies of the world by 2020 feasible, access to information and communication technology at all levels of the education sector should be accorded priority, Sam Egwu, the Minister of Education, has said.

He said this is the only way to reposition the educational system to meet global standards, and to respond appropriately to the needs of the society, as countries such as China, Malaysia, India, South Korea, Singapore and others, have used ICT and e-learning to fast-track their economic development.

Developing through e-learning

E-learning is the acquisition of knowledge and skills using electronic technology such as computers and the internet-based courseware and local and wide area networks.

Mr. Egwu expressed the view that e-learning is a logical and strategic approach to achieve the technological transformation of Nigeria, adding that the deployment of the ICT is critical in the implementation of education roadmap, which is designed to revamp the education system.

E-learning committee

The minister, while inaugurating the committees to drive e-learning initiative in Nigeria on Tuesday in Abuja, said the roadmap recognises that e-learning is an important platform for alleviating most of the problems currently facing the nation’s education system.

“As a nation and key player in world affairs, Nigeria cannot afford to be left, trailing behind other nations in the global ladder of ICT. We must, therefore, mobilise our resources in partnership with the private sector, in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals,” he said.

Mr. Egwu urged the committee to come up, without delay, with actionable plans and recommendations that will ensure the immediate diffusion of e-learning into our education system, and also ensure that they rationalise and optimise bandwidth aggregation, and ICT expenditure to be borne by the ministry, educational institutions and other stakeholders.

Redefining education

E-learning is expected to redefine education, for example, the classroom will no longer be demarcated by brick walls; rather “students can communicate with their teachers from their bedrooms or wherever they are especially during strikes while housewives can receive lectures from their kitchen without having face-to-face interaction with their instructors.”

On the directive that students should make up to 75 per cent lecture attendance before they are awarded a pass mark in any subject, the minister said e-learning does not in any way contradict that policy. “I mean the 75 per cent attendance is still there. This e-learning helps the student to save the time they spend in going to the library, the time they spend in trying to make contact with their teachers and even access to journals.”

Dearth of infrastructure

Mr. Egwu identified infrastructure availability as the bane of e-learning in Nigeria, especially with the erratic power supply situation, compounded by lack of access to technology. “That is why this committee is going to do basic work on infrastructure. It is not just enough to say we want bandwidth, broadband or the connectivity in isolation, for the foundation to be strong, power must be involved.”

Committee members speak

Leo Stan Eke, Chief Executive Officer of Zinox Technologies, and a member of the committee, said, “If there is no solid e-Learning foundation, this country cannot move forward in human capital development and that is the challenge. That also explains why we have half-baked graduates.”

Also, Chika Ibeneme of Calfa Investment Limited, another member, said e-learning “is not going to be on the laptops alone; it is going to run on handsets and it is the same component like every other GSM with the addition like the internet, the CCTV and other features.”

On her part, Florence Seriki, Omatek Computers Chairman, noted that it is about time Nigeria joined the e-learning team and bridged the gap. “There is a lot of gap between e-learning in Nigeria and the world. It is also a way of allowing the youths to produce the same computers through capacity building. We have brought technology transfer and these youths will be part of the making of the computers.”

Students are expected to begin to derive the benefits of the new programme before the end of the first quarter.