Tag: Anchor varsity

Anchor University Lagos (AUL), may be just be about three years old, but a parent, Mr Olu Ayela, has expressed confidence in its ability to deliver its vision to be “a citadel of learning for holistic human transformation and development anchored on the tripartite wheels of Character, Competence and Courage.”

The school owned by the Deeper Christian Life Ministry, is currently in its second academic calendar and has established a number of collaborations with international agencies and universities to boost learning in various fields of endeavor.

Ayela said he was already seeing the school’s impact on his son, Samuel, who gained admission this session to study Economics.

Ayela, secretary of the Parents’ Forum of the university said his older children attended other private universities but AUL stood out for him.

He said: “I chose this school because I heard a lot about the school.  even before registration of the school, I was there myself.  I saw the environment was conducive for learning – everything was up to standard.  The facilities were state of the art – the structures, the lecture rooms powered with air conditioners and the quality of lecturers.   It is also faith based university. All these attracted me to the school.

“My first two daughters graduated from private universities.  When you compare and contrat, you can see the difference.  When you are here (at AUL), it is like you are not in Nigeria.  Again the quality of lecturers listed on their website makes me convinced.  I have been in jouirnalism for 34 years and you get to hear of these people.

Ayela said the Parents’ Forum, which was inaugurated at the beginning of the 2017/2018 academic session, backs the management in running the university.  He said for instance, the forum ratified the university’s decision to punish students who flouted its rules on drug use.

“Our own is to meet from time to time to discuss issues relating to the school, how we can improve it. We have met twice. We discussed especially in the area of discipline.  We hear what transpires in the school.  For instance, we heard about three students were involved in certain drugs but they have already taken the issue up. One has been rusticated the others are on suspension.

“Before you are admitted, you read through a code of conduct and choose if you are ready to abide by the code of conduct. So you have a choice whether to stay on or to go,” he said.

Ayela also praised the professionalism drive of the school, for instance, he said the students are made to take professional examinations related to their disciplines.

“Students are registered for ICAN already.  My son has registered and is already talking about how he wants to be like Charles Soludo,” he said.

Anchor University, Lagos, may be just three years old but it is fast building its reputation as a veritable ground for cutting edge training for academics, students, and professionals beyond its campus.

Its latest effort in this area was a three-day training last week to bring refreshing perspectives into the teaching and learning process.

The university hosted lecturers across the country between Monday and Wednesday to learn about project-based learning (PBL) organised by AUL in conjunction with the Worcester Polytechnic Institute in the United States.

The training was facilitated by Paula Quinn, Associate Director, Centre for Project-based learning, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and Caitlin Keller, Instructional Designer from the same Institute.

At the opening ceremony of the workshop on Monday, Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof Joseph Afolayan underscored the need to review the teaching processes in Nigeria to check the dwindling quality of graduates. He also said PBL would enable the students to develop critical thinking skills that would make them productive in their fields.

“Project-Based Learning would help trainers to understand and appreciate the limits of their students and ensure learners apply practical solutions to problems in classrooms and the real world,” he said.

Also speaking, the Dean, Faculty of Natural & Applied Sciences as well as chairman of the local organising committee, Prof Johnston Fatokun, said PBL would help both lecturers and their students to become problem-solvers and not just theoretical learners.

“We need to understand and systematically teach our students how the lessons in their classrooms relate to the industry and how the solutions gotten in the classrooms can help resolve everyday challenges,” he said.

Newly-admitted students will swear the matriculation oath of Anchor University, Lagos (AUL), on Saturday during the second matriculation of the institution.

They have been admitted to study History and Diplomacy Studies, English and Literature Studies, and Christian Religious Studies under the Faculty of Humanities; Accounting, Business Administration,  Economics, Mass Communication, and Political Science under the Faculty of Social and Management Sciences; and Biology, Microbiology, Biochemistry, Chemistry, Mathematics, Computer Science, and Physics under the Faculty of Natural & Applied Sciences

The faith-based university owned by the Deeper Christian Life Ministry started academic activities for the first time on February 6, 2017.

In  a statement signed by the Assistant Registrar, Strategy and Communications, Mr Sanusi Okesola, noted that the matriculation would be preceded by the maiden Parents’Consultative Forum, which will be held at the same venue.

Anchor University, Lagos (AUL) is set to expand its  curriculum as it partners with Canada on Digital Humanities a field of study in Humanities.

An expert in the field, Prof Dan O’ Donnell of Lethbridge University, Canada visited the school  to enlighten on what the field of study entails.

Donnell, an English major, explained that the Digital Humanities is an interface for Humanities’ researchers to communicate with various  researchers.

He said with the technology advancement in the digital age, it was necessary for the world to move at the same pace with effective communication skills.

“I am English major. I do digital works. I work all the time with researchers in different fields – some across regional boundaries. It helps you work effectively on your research, methodologically and using the computing tools. With the new input on digital technology on humanities, people can leverage, think creatively in a way that are extremely useful for the government, industries and for the progress of a country.

“One distinguishing factor of the Digital Humanities is that it covers various fields of study. It could be quite technical. Like the XML and Unicode were developed by Digital Humanities researchers. There is also an aspect of studying Mass Communication. How is it that we can use the web and other technologies to impact knowledge? How do we live in a digital age? How can we exploit the new technology to make our researches important and valuable? These are part of the areas it addresses,” he said.

In his entourage were Prof Presley Ifukor of the University of Muenster, Germany and Dr Tunde Opeibi, Convener of the Summer School Digital Humanities workshop.

AUL Vice Chancellor, Prof Joseph Afolayan, thanked Donnell for sharing his knowledge, assuring that AUL would benefit from the collaboration and seeks how the partnership could facilitate exchanges of students and staff for international experiences.

“I am impressed with the idea of bringing digital concept into studies in humanities and Anchor University will take advantage of this opportunity to the fullest,” he added.