The Vice-Chancellor (VC) of the University of Ibadan UI, Professor Kayode Adebowale, has stated that it is essential for the University to be ready to deliver seamless lectures for students in emergency scenarios.
This was stated by Professor Adebowale on Thursday at a celebration honoring University instructors who took part in the Partnership of Enhanced Blended Learning (PEBL) program offered by the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU) and National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN).
The University honored the twenty-seven lecturers, drawn from various departments, as worthy ambassadors and presented them with Certificates and Letters of Commendation.
The Vice-Chancellor stated that Covid-19 demonstrated that face-to-face interactions were no longer sufficient for learning in tertiary institutions, recalling that during the pandemic, the University had to implement Emergency Remote Teaching.
He appreciated the commitment of the participants who are expected to impart their knowledge to other lecturers in the University.
In her remarks earlier, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research, Innovation and Strategic Partnerships, Professor Oluyemisi Bamgbose, explained that the programme was one of those organised by the ACU in conjunction with the NOUN for West African universities.
Thirty -five participants were invited and 32 registered for the rigorous training, which began in February 2022 but only 27 participants completed the programme and graduated in September 2022.
According to the Coordinator of the group, Dr Adesola Odole of the Department of Physiotherapy, the participants were all passionate about teaching and learning and were thus able to withstand the challenges that they faced.
She disclosed that plans were already afoot for the participants to train 100 lecturers and 500 students of the University of Ibadan under the e-learning and blended learning programme.
Special recognition was given to Dr Olufunmilayo Adeleye of the Department of Animal Science who emerged as the Best Graduating Student in UI, Nigeria, and West Africa, in the programme.
The program includes six Nigerian universities: Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufi Alike; First Technical University, Ibadan; University of Lagos; Ebonyi State University; University of Ibadan; and Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, as well as six Ghanaian universities.
The National Universities Commission is also involved in ensuring that the PEBL’s outputs are shared across the region and continent as the project moves forward.
