From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman, has announced that degrees obtained via Open and Distance Learning (ODL) system of education in Nigeria from accredited institutions have same and equal value with the ones issued at regular/conventional university system.
The Minister further explained that ODL system of education was established years ago to close the widening gap created by limited admission spaces in the conventional universities which was and still being experienced in Nigeria university system.
The Minister, speaking at the opening ceremony of three-day stakeholders’ roundtable for the critique and adoption of the draft stand-alone National Policy on Open, Distance and e-Learning in Abuja, on Tuesday, reaffirmed that ODL system has come to stay, adding that it has served and continued to serve the purpose for which it was established.
He said: “Sadly, only limited number of qualified students (about 25%) who applied for admissions into tertiary institutions are able to secure admissions in a particular admission year. What happens to the rest of hundreds that are interested in university education? ODL has closed that gap.
“National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN) has been doing amazingly well, growing in leaps and bounds over the years. Several universities have also been accredited recently to run dual mode system of education under close and strict monitoring of the National Universities Commission (NUC).”
The Minister admitted the concerns of some Nigerians and employers of labour about the quality of education in ODL, but assured that there’s a strong quality assurance system in place to checkmate the content and delivery system of the ODL operators.
“Evidently, ODL is the future and we have to embrace it wholeheartedly. Government has developed robust policies to address the challenges being witnessed in the ODL system of education particularly the issue of quality assurance of the system.
“To this end, more advocacy is required, and being done to correct that misconceptions. We are aware that some ODL students have been unable to participate in law school and NYSC scheme. These issues are being addressed and would be resolved sooner than expected.”
Director of ICT, Federal Ministry of Education who represented the Minister of State for Education, Dr. Tanko Sununu, in the event, commended the moves to strengthen the ODL system of education as alternative to the regular and conventional university system.
He said: “The focus of ODL in Nigeria has in recent years shifted from being something which is just desirable to becoming a reality with the establishment of NOUN and the emergence of a number of conventional Universities and Polytechnics with the approval of the NUC and the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), respectively, to operate ODL centres.
“We must acknowledge the significant challenges which have to be overcome, relating to financial resources, intellectual capital and sustainability as well as the standard and quality of ODL delivery. This is where the development of sustainable policy on ODL becomes critical to realign national strategies with emerging educational challenges.”
He added that the National Council on Education (NCE) had, in 2021, approved that the Federal Ministry of Education collaborate with relevant stakeholders to develop a stand-alone National Policy for ODL, hence the stakeholders’ roundtable that provides a great opportunity for participants from the academia, government agencies and private sector to share experiences on technical issues that confront us in the operation of ODL in Nigeria.
“It will also broaden our perspectives and enable us to forge ahead in our journey to strengthen ODL in Nigeria from the basic, post-basic through tertiary education sub-sector,” he said.
Acting Executive Secretary, NUC, Chris Maiyaki, in his remarks, said that 2020 COVID-19 pandemic reawakened the consciousness of the world to importance of online activities, thus forcing several nations including Nigeria to give considerations to online education system through the ODL aided by technology.
In a presentation, Emeritus Prof. Olugbemiro Jegede, who is considered the father of ODL in Nigeria, highlighted the quick transformation that could be witnessed in the education sector through efficient and effective implementation of ODL system of education.
He said: “ODL is the future of education in world. With the increasing access and penetration of internet to more communities, medical, education, commerce and several other services are being redefined by technology. We can’t afford to be left behind.”
He made reference to notable name in Nigeria like Emeritus Professors Pai Obanya and Afe Babalola, who passed through the ODL system of education to become the best in their different callings.