The Nigerian government has welcomed the offer by Schoolnet India Ltd and Learnet Skills Ltd to partner with it and private-sector entities to implement its KYAN smart class solutions in Nigerian schools.
Disclosing this on Monday, Vice President Kashim Shettima said the project, which aims to digitally transform education by introducing interactive smart boards and digital content to improve learning outcomes, will be highly beneficial to primary and secondary schools in Nigeria if domesticated with local content.
The Vice President, who spoke when he received a team from the manufacturing company led by its Managing Director, Mr Chandra Reddy, described the KYAN smart class solutions as “a rugged package with the capacity to deliver.”
He asked the Schoolnet Ltd team to liaise with relevant officials of the Nigerian government to deliberate on how to domesticate the learning package by integrating local content for Nigerian schools.
VP Shettima cited the smart school initiatives in Edo and Enugu, noting that integrating these indigenous ideas with KYAN smart class solutions into a single system would significantly benefit Nigerian schools.
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He recalled the use of KYAN smart class solutions to teach students in Borno State while he was governor, pointing out that such innovations could revolutionise Nigeria’s education system.
“The beauty of KYAN is that it is a very rugged machine. You can use one card to teach 70 students. If you are to buy a tablet per student, the highest you will target are higher institutions or senior secondary schools.
“I am more interested in your package for primary schools and secondary schools, like you did in Borno. In Borno, you even did for tertiary institutions, but now, tertiary can be replaced with TBET.
“So, you can package it well so that we can have a domesticated version. Honestly speaking, the Indian version of English is different from our own. Maybe you can use AI to customise it to our own local curriculum,” the VP stated.
Managing Director of Schoolnet India Ltd, Mr Reddy, said the company is highly inspired by the Nigerian government’s vision to adopt technology in classrooms.
In the company’s bid to leverage the vast educational opportunities in Nigeria, he explained that they are offering a very unique solution, “a school in a box,” also known as KYAN, describing the technology as all-in-one.
Highlighting the features of the innovation, he said:
“It has an integrated projector and a high-end computer. It converts any wall into a smartboard and has a camera. It comes preloaded with digital content for grades 1 to 10.
“And it also uses AI where the internet is available. Where it is not available, all the content is preloaded inside this ‘school in a box,” he added.
Mr Reddy further noted that if deployed, the KYAN innovation would have a significant impact on teachers’ performance in Nigeria.
He recalled that the KYAN technological solutions were introduced in Borno State when Vice President Shettima was governor, noting that teachers in the state were trained to use it.
As advised by the Vice President, the Schoolnet Managing Director pledged to work closely with Nigerian officials to develop an integrated solution for communities nationwide, covering both remote schools without internet access and those already connected.