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The Student Insider

Meeting higher education demand in Nigeria

Date

Written by
Binda Rai

Open and distance learning (ODL) in higher education in Nigeria was the subject of a three-day workshop held at the University of London and attended by senior policy makers of the Nigerian National Universities Commission, and Vice-Chancellors and Directors of ODL from universities across Nigeria.

Nigerian HE delegation attend workshop at Senate House

The workshop, hosted by the University of London and led by UoL’s Centre for Distance Education, was held in conjunction with the National Universities Commission, the regulatory body responsible for tertiary provision in Nigeria.

Through the three days of talks and interactive sessions, which ended yesterday (18 July), the workshop explored ways to optimise learner outcomes in terms of both academic achievement and employability, within the context of strategic development of ODL. It also examined opportunities to harness research and scholarship in ODL.

The workshop addressed issues specific to Nigeria, and examined the application of the University of London’s Recognised Teaching Centre model, used to deliver face-to-face tuition across the world. 

Sessions included:

  • student experience: recruitment and retention through distance learning
  • employability outcomes: strategy and frameworks for embedding employability education
  • academic outcomes: plagiarism and assessment offences
  • organisation approaches to assessment through examinations and coursework and the role of technology in education.

Dr Olamide Adesina - Director, Open and Distance Education, representing the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission, Professor Adamu Abubakar Rasheed, said:

"All of us attending the workshop found it extremely helpful; it will enable us to push the distance and flexible agenda forward in Nigeria. This is a good way for us to scale up our higher education provision to meet the demands of our growing economy while maintaining the focus on quality and outcomes."

She added:

Throughout the three-day event, we have been able to draw on the University of London’s experience of delivering distance and flexible learning for more than 160 years; but more importantly, we are impressed by its track record of innovation and ensuring its curricula are current in meeting the demands of educationalists, students and employers alike.

In her closing remarks, Dr Adesina paid tribute to the vision of the NUC Executive Secretary in establishing the strategic partnership with the University of London.

Mike Winter OBE, Director Global Engagement, University of London said: “This three-day event is the latest in a series of engagements with the NUC and the Nigerian HE sector which has comprised policy symposia, academic conferences and workshops in London and Abuja. We place enormous value on our long-term strategic partnership with the NUC as it meets the challenges and the opportunities of a rapidly evolving higher education sector.”

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