Prof. Bola Ola a lecturer at the Department of Behavioural Medicine, Faculty of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, Lagos State University in this interview, posits that the consequent economic cost for unemployed families will be high because their children are disadvantaged and this will inevitably affect them. Excerpts:
Do you agree that e-learning has developed significantly during this COVID-19 pandemic?
E-learning in simple terms is the use of technology to enhance learning and this has been harnessed particularly with the internet. In the developed nations, the integration of e-learning into education has been successfully conducted before the advent of Covid-19. This integration has been adjusted with lessons from pandemics of flu and SARS. However, in many parts of the developing countries, there have been challenges that have slowed down the adoption of e-learning in our educational institutions. The migration of students into learning from home is in alignment with one of the established principles of containing pandemics. This is social distancing. Since the developed nations have developed modalities before this, the entire migration would seem easier when compared to the developing nations that have been characterised by difficult challenges that include finance, lack of expertise and lack of implementation of the educational policies. For the high income countries, learning and satisfaction with e-learning is a continuation while for the low and middle-income countries, it is likely to be a fire brigade approach.
However, it is a point for us to learn, particularly with possibilities of future epidemics and pandemics. It is a turning point for preparedness. In other words, in developing nations, we are just realising how important this could be for development while high income nations have gone beyond that.
What is the impact of COVID-19 on education in Nigeria?
I will move from the obvious to the non-obvious. First, the schools are closed. There are issues for teachers, parents, and for administrators. These concerns bother on social and economic issues and may go from missing exams, to not being able to move to next point; loss of jobs for teachers or earnings. As many schools have tried to go online, those with no access because of low socio-economic status will suffer. The impact is going to be more severe for disadvantaged children and their families because they will have interrupted learning. For those in the North, where going to school is a means for good nutrition, the consequence is compromised nutrition, and health. The likelihood of childcare problems, and consequent economic cost to families who could not work will be high.
What do you think is the best combination of e-learning tools for online education?
The combination involves e-learning, teachers presence and communication. The first type of combination is where there is E-learning with teachers presence and electronic communication. This involves use of PowerPoints and digital discs. This has been used in Nigerian educational settings before Covid-19. But during Covid-19, it is not in line with social distancing. And thus it is not a good combination for the time.
The second type is where e-learning takes place without teachers presence but with electronic communication. This will work in this period but it will be most fit for adults.
The third type is e-learning with virtual presence of teacher and electronic communication. This is what is preferred because learning and feedback take place real time. And this is where teachers need to understand how ICT can enhance learning different from the classical didactic approach. However there are insufficient tools to make this work.
The fourth type is e-learning with teachers occasional presence and e-communication. This will fit adult learning too but it may not be good for children and adolescents. The fifth one is E-learning with physical presence and e-communication. This is hybrid approach but not workable in the present situation. It is something that would be useful post pandemic. This fifth approach is called blended learning and is the most fit for learning when there is no pandemic that requires social distancing.
So for the future, each educational setting can vary between any of these approaches depending on the situation.
What is the future of e-learning for us as a nation?
We have prepared policies on ICT-enhanced education. We need to make it implementable. The barriers identified need to be addressed. Funding is key. 21st century skills and competence of the teachers in the use of ICT to enhance student-oriented learning for current and future problems are very key too. Apart from our national policy, there is a need to adapt some of the UNESCO recommendations for response to emergencies and post emergencies, such as the use of distance learning programmes and open educational applications and platforms that schools and teachers can use to reach learners remotely in order to mitigate the disruption of education. This would include secure platforms for formative and summative assessments in any subject of study in primary, secondary and tertiary levels.
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