The Nation Newspaper

Tag: academics

  • ‘I prefer music to academics’

    ‘I prefer music to academics’

    Edwin Oduware, a 400-Level Science Laboratory Technology student of the University of Benin (UNIBEN), is known on the campus as a talented hip-hop artiste. He dazzled students with his music at a show organised by Peak Milk. EDDY UWOGHIREN (100-Level Medicine) writes.

    Students of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) gathered in Hall II car park in the university to watch Street Battle, a show organised by Peak Milk after a hard day at school.

    One of the campus’ upcoming artistes that performed at the event, Edwin Oduware, was barely noticed.

    Edwin, a 400-Level student of Science Laboratory Technology (SLT), is known by the stage name, Eddy-Blings. The crowd went into a frenzy when he began singing.

    All attention was on him as he gave his best to become the best of the artistes.

    “It was absolutely an incredible performance,” said Eddy when CAMPUSLIFE sought his views after the performance.

    At 13, he started recording songs online. The hip-hop artiste said he started his musical career from the hills of Ikpoba in the ancient Benin City, where he was always called on to perform at street carnivals, birthday parties and churches programmes.

    Music, he says, is the only way he can express himself. “The challenges and experience I have been through are the greatest source of inspiration to me,” he said.

    Outside the university, he has performed at notable social gatherings, including the Hexagon in Government Reserved Area (GRA) in Benin City.

    Eddy said he felt singing alone might not take him higher in his musical career, because “many people can sing”. To be unique, he trained himself on how to play bass, guitar, drums, keyboard and piano.

    “I have always had an interest in every musical instrument and I never wanted to limit myself to singing alone,” he said, adding: “I am kind of a utility guy.” He also underwent training in music directing and producing.

    Eddy also repairs electrical devices. He said his love for electrical works made him reject an admission to study Botany at the Ambrose Alli University (AAU) in Ekpoma, Edo State. He opted to study Electrical and Electronics Engineering at the Federal Polytechnic in Auchi (AUCHI POLY), also in Edo State, where he obtained a National Diploma (ND).

     

  • Okojie questions capacity of academics

    The Executive Secretary, National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof Julius Okojie, has praised the annual international workshops of the Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), promising that henceforth, the commission will partner in subsequent editions.

    This was part of Okojie’s goodwill message at the opening of the university’s fourth international workshop held at the university premises.

    The three-day workshop had as theme: Learning in the age of rapidly changing technology.

    Okojie, who was represented by the immediate past Vice-Chancellor, Osun State University, Osun State, Prof Sola Akinrinade, was impressed by the theme of the workshop and calibre of resource persons. He noted that the low capacity of professionals to deliver quality education as the reason people think the education standard has fallen in Nigeria.

    He said: “Indeed, the subject matter of this workshop is important for the future of higher education system in this country. Questions have been raised severally and over the years on the quality of the output of the universities and indeed of the tertiary education system. Some have gone to the extent of declaring with glee that the standard of education in our tertiary institutions has fallen in spirit and in truth!

    “A careful analysis will reveal that it is not the standards that have fallen but the capacity of the operators of our institutions to implement laid down standards at virtually all levels of the education system.

    “One thing has also become glaring: there is a great need for capacity building for those tasked with impacting knowledge to our students in the classroom. It has always been obvious that the PhD degree is a research rather than teaching degree. For most of the disciplines in our universities, lecturers only hold research degrees and not teaching qualifications. Even for those holding teaching qualifications, pedagogical trends over the years have witnessed dynamic innovation and changes that most are not familiar with. Initiatives such as this workshop constitutes important contributions to the capacity building process for our university lecturers.”

     

     

    However, two of the resource persons who spoke to The Nation, said the theme was ideal in this era of dwindling passion for the chalk profession.

    A Prof of Philosophy, University of West Indies Kingston, Jamaica, John Tunde Bewaji who also delivered a paper: ‘Forging and maintaining a Win-win parents-lecturers relationship in the institution of higher setting’, said the workshop provoked discourses on various teaching pedagogy.

    “It (workshop) is very significant because rarely do we get lecturers or professors coming together to look at the practice and import of what they do especially as a self reflecting mechanism, and as a way of appreciating what goes into what they do. Bringing resource persons and have them evaluate what is taking place-the negatives, the positives, while also looking into the future.

    Corroborating Bewaji, former Vice-Chancellor University of Ilorin Prof Prof Ishaq Oloyede said the workshop was a veritable platform for discussants to reexamine how high-quality teaching, just like the days of old, could be re-ignited.

    Oloyede who also delivered a paper,’Maintaining high professional standards in a value-deteriorating society,’ had this to say: “I think ABUAD has put in place a workshop which to me is of high quality by any standard. The resource and facilities are marvelous. ABUAD in terms of physical facilities is in a special class of its own. What we are trying to do is to make sure participants; especially lecturers in ABUAD derive maximum benefit from the facilities made available by this university. What is also important is to synthesise what we had learnt and develop it to impact more on higher education.”

     

  • Council chair challenges academics to publish books

    the Chairman, Governing Council of the Kwara State Polytechnic, Ilorin, Prof Shehu Jimoh, has challenged academics to publish books.

    The retired professor of Psychology spoke in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, at the launch of a book written by the Registrar of the polytechnic, Moses Salami.

    The book is entitled Developing a career in the registry of a tertiary institution.

    He also urged academics to inculcate in their students reading culture to make them all round students. In his remark, the Kwara State Governor, AbdulFatah Ahmed stressed the imperative of enriching public knowledge through educative books. The governor, who launched the book with N500, 000, tasked academics to write and publish more books to arrest shortage of materials in Nigeria.

    He added that the book would immensely assist those in the registry department of tertiary institutions.

    The Rector of the institution described the book as most appropriate, appreciating the efforts and sacrifice of the author.

    Mr. Salami said the 93-page book was part of his contribution towards building an effective registry in tertiary institutions.