Lecturers in Nigeria’s colleges of education have been urged to embrace Information Communication Technology as a tool to enable them meet up with the current and emerging realities.
This is according to the Executive Secretary of Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Trust fund TETfund, Prof. Sunny Echono.
Echono made this known in Lagos during a Capacity Building Workshop for teachers in Colleges of Education.
Prof. Echono said that the capacity building workshop was to inculcate in the provosts and leaders in colleges of education the importance of technology, role of curriculum development and pedagogy in achieving a more effective and competitive educational system for the country.
He maintained that teachers must show a high level of professionalism by increasing their knowledge base in technology.
Prof. Echono who advised teachers to embrace the use of ICT In their teachings stressed that teachers are facilitators who must be equipped to perform optimally.
“The world is changing, the way we used to have a teacher as the only knowledgeable person in the classroom dispensing that knowledge to people has changed. Knowledge is now available universally. You can google it or find it in the internet. So the teacher is increasingly becoming a facilitator. We need to change the orientation of our teachers at this level. If you don’t train the teachers themselves who are now expected to lead this change in Pedagogy, in Curriculum delivery, then you’re missing it. Except we attract the best brains and retain them in the teaching profession, we would have been doing grave injustice to future generations of our citizens.” He said.
Prof Echono also reiterated the Nigeria’s Tertiary Education Trust fund’s commitment in providing more resources to teaching practice and other forms of improvements for teachers.
“The President has approved the major policy blue print that will see the repositioning of teachers in our country and we are sensitizing the beneficiaries as well as those who have to carry the message forward. We in TETFund have have an additional responsibility of ensuring that we commit more resources to teaching practice and other forms of improvement for teachers as directed by the president.” He added.
One of the participants, Dr. Onwukwe Ernest of the Alvan Ikoku College of Education said there is need for curriculum development in the way that what is offered is in tandem with the needs of the society.
“The curricular should be revisited and updated so that what is offered in the universities or colleges of education is actually according to the need of the society.” He stated.
The capacity building workshop has its theme ‘Enhancing Pedagogical Skills and Curriculum Development for Quality Education Delivery In Nigeria Colleges of Education.
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