The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Students

  • Online educative forum for students

    Online educative forum for students

    To enrich pupils’ knowledge, Integrand Capital LLC, an enterprise and publicity support firm, has set up an online educative forum where related educative topics would be taught and interactive sessions allowed for questions.

    The programme titled: #Genlivecast, which commences on Saturday, is a volunteer-to- mentor platform where resource persons would teach topics on business, culture, ICT, education, lifestyle, sports, agriculture, entertainment, and tips on employment.

    Others include: start-ups, D-I-Y skills, music, environment, and social media.

    Each topic would be taught for 30 minutes with another 30 minutes assigned for interactive session. It will run daily from 5pm weekdays, and 12pm on Saturdays, with each day having a different facilitator.

    The twitter handle to follow is @Konilingos while the facebook link is IntegrandCapitalLLC.

    Coordinator of the initiative, Mr Dan-Akan Elias said: “We are introducing a platform on twitter where a pool of resource persons can teach others from what they know online for free. It will also incorporate facebook link with undergraduates and teenagers in schools as target audience and monthly ‘meet-ups’ to evaluate impacts on participants and new ideas generated.”

    He said the topics would be tailored towards enriching participants with information in mini-modules form so they can become enterprising, unlike conventional academic-style lectures.

  • Free WASCE forms for students in Epe

    Free WASCE forms for students in Epe

    The Renaissance Social Development Group, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), on Monday distributed West African Senior Certificate Examination (WASCE) application forms to 128 secondary school students in Epe, Lagos State.

    The Chairman of the NGO, Mr Abiodun Muritala, said the gesture was to commemorate Governor Akinwunmi Ambode`s 52nd birthday, and to assist the beneficiaries from the different wards of the area in their academic pursuits.

    He said the group believed that education was the only pathway to sustainable development.

    The chairman described Ambode as an illustrious and outstanding son of Epe, adding that the distribution of the forms was to highlight the governor’s great passion for education.

    Muritala explained that, though, the group started as a social club where indigenes could network socially; the yearnings of Epe indigenes for more development had informed the group’s transforming into a development one.

    “No investment in education is a waste, we are aware of the economic situation of the country and we want to support our youths in the area of education.

    “Epe needs more development, that is why we are involved in promoting the capacity building of our people so that they can in turn help to build the ancient city,’’ he said.

    Ambode, represented by Mr Olufemi Onanuga at the event,commended the group for supporting the youths through educational development.

    The governor said that he was impressed by the gesture and urged other associations and individuals to emulate the NGO.

    “I congratulate the group for supporting our youths; I also urge the private sector and other stakeholders to support educational development in the state.

    “Government alone cannot deliver all the improvement in the education sector, that this why individuals and groups have to support us,’’ the governor said.

    He pledged that his administration would do its best to further raise the standard of education and economic development of the state.

    Some of the beneficiaries who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) commended the group for its kind gesture.

    Master Rabiu Lawal from Ibeju- Lekki, thanked the group for the gesture saying, it would greatly help him pursue his academic career vigorously.

    “With this form, I do not need to disturb my parents about WASSCE because it will take away some financial burden from them.

    “I am happy at what the Renaissance has done for me and pray God will continue to help them,’’ he said.

    Also, Miss Edith Joshua from Epe said that the group had relived her of some of her problems.

    She commended the group for deeming it fit to give back to the young people in the area, adding that the gesture would bring about development to the area.

    “I have been thinking of how to get money to purchase the WASSCE form, but now, all my worries have gone, I am very happy,’’ she said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that traditional rulers, top government officials and other illustrious indigenes of Epe graced the event.

  • Students grumble over renovation

    Students of the Kogi State University (KSU) in Anyigba have bemoaned the relocation order by the management asking them to vacate their hostels for renovation. The students, who were yet to finish their exams and final year projects, said the management should have allowed them to complete their examination and other engagements.

    The aggrieved students made their complaints known while speaking to our reporter. They said the management did not put their plight into consideration before giving out the order. They wondered why the renovation could not be done at the end of the session.

    The management said the renovation was in the best interest of the students, noting that it would make the academic environment conducive for them.

    Chairman of the institution’s chapter of Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Comrade Moses Balogun, said the renovation was in the best interest of the students. It would address the accommodation challenges in the school, he said.

    But, students saw it from different angle, saying their relocation had exposed some of them to dangers. Some female students, who said they did not have relatives in Anyigba, said they were at the risk of being raped, because they were forced to stay with strangers whose characters, they said, they didn’t know.

    CAMPUSLIFE gathered that those, who were still writing examinations and final projects, have been relocated to new hostel buildings.

    Balogun said: “Renovation is a normal exercise from time to time in all universities. It is not new here. The students should be happy about the prospect that they would come back to meet brand new facilities, including hostels and lecture theatres. They should embrace it rather than whine about it.”

  • Babcock University deploys wireless technology to connect students, teachers

    Babcock University deploys wireless technology to connect students, teachers

    Babcock University, Ilesan Remo, Ogun State has embraced the Total Classroom Revolution (TCR) that will wirelessly connect all undergraduates, post-graduates and certificate students, lecturers, school administrators to classrooms, chapel, halls of residence, library, and cafeteria in  a campus-wide platform.

    On completion, the project will help to accelerate students learning, research and social collaboration using a combination of the latest and best- in- class advanced education technologies that can only be found among top universities in Europe, Asia and America.

    Its Vice Chancellor, Prof Kayode Makinde, said the technologies will connect lecturers and students in real-time collaboration, learning and problem solving, ensure through the use of a special tool for content creation, authoring and publishing capacities for lecturers. Besides, parents are integrated into the world of real- live education development of their wards.

    Makinde said the institution was working with a consortium of six firms from Canada, Israel, Germany, United States, France and India backed by two topmost Nigerian banks to deploy 12,000 customised Babcock Learning Tablets (BLT) for students with 32 Gigabit android powered 10.1 inch tablets.

    The BLT each comes with solar charger that serves as keyboard designed to double the life span of the battery’ compresses bandwidth to ensure students have free access to basic internet facilities meant for education purposes only built by a Canadian company with 18 patents for its peerless education learning tablets.

    Prof Makinde said the total classroom revolution is evidence of the school’s management unwavering commitment towards the continuous achievement of academic excellence that Babcock is known for since its inception “This new project will further consolidate the leadership position of Babcock as a pacesetter and the best in the league of private universities in Nigeria.”

    He said the package integrates in- motion- identification biometrics (IMID), the latest and most advanced biometrics in the world today that allows for identification and authentication of students while in motion from a distance without the usual delay and health challenges that are associated with legacy biometrics technologies.

    The IMID identifies up to eight students per second using behavioral, voice and facial   characteristics. It will be deployed at the halls of residence, cafeteria, and chapels in the first phase. The TCR also includes a robust school app, anti-theft software for the BLTs, push communication, Firmware-over-the-Air (FOTA), Student Management System (SMS) technologies, and others.

    According to the IVETEC -WiniGroup Project Manager, Mr. Akin Akintayo, the company coordinating the six consortium of companies, also to be implemented is Advanced Learning Management System (ALMS) allowing seamless recording of video and audio lectures delivered by lecturers and archiving of same to make it easier for students to review.

    He said lecturers would benefit immensely from its content creation and authoring tool that puts that will help them convert their content to books and lecture notes at the speed of light to drive both students and lecturers productivity.  Furthermore, Babcock will have access to over 20 features on ALMS such as student attendance and participation in classroom, social jam, etc.

  • Anxiety as grieving OOU students seize factory, Lagos – Ore expressway

    Anxiety as grieving OOU students seize factory, Lagos – Ore expressway

    Thousands of grieving Olabisi Onabqnjo University (OOU) students seized the Sagamu – Ilisan stretch of the Lagos – Ore expressway as they stormed the scene of horrific accident which claimed the lives of a dozen of their colleagues last Friday.

    Vehicular movement came to abrupt halt on both lanes of the dual carriage way – hordes of travelers were turned back even as they threatened to hauled stones at any truck carrying container.

    The students who arrived in four long buses and about three cars had converged to pray at the scene for the repose of their colleagues but emotions took the better part of them as they cried, yelled and cursed the driver that brought the untimely death on the affected students.

    Tens of Policemen, members of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and operatives of the Ogun state’s traffic agency, TRACE, made frantic efforts to rein them in but with minimal success.

    Seizing both arms of the expressway at the Ikenne -Ilisan stretch of it, they marched to the site of a factory beside the expressway few meters away from the accident, which they suspect to own the container that crushed students to death.

    The company has since shut down momentarily but armed policemen stationed at the gate and are prevented them from advancing but following pressure from students, the steel gate gave way, and they surged into the factory in their thousands.

    It would be recalled that over a dozen of students of the Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) Ago – Iwoye, were crushed to death and others gravely injured on Friday when a container fell on a passenger bus conveying them.

    The 20-feet container from a moving truck came off when the driver was driving àgainst traffic and in a bid to avoid an obstruction at the Sagamu stretch of the Lagos/Benin expressway, the load tipped  and dropped lethally atop of the bus’ roof.

    The weighty container press – pinned the bus to the ground in the accident, which occurred few meters away from the gate of a plastic manufacturing company situating near the Ilisha Remo junction.

    The vehicle was a truck marked (LAGOS) BDG 779 XE and a Toyota Haiace passenger bus bearing (Lagos) XV 311 MUS.

    It was learnt that the OOU students were travelling to Lagos state for the weekend when they met their untimely death.

     

  • OOU students forcefully collect colleagues’ corpses from morgue

    OOU students forcefully collect colleagues’ corpses from morgue

    Commotion enveloped the premises of the Ade Maternity Home, Sagamu, on Saturday as scores of grieving students of the Olabisi Onabanjo University(OOU) forcefully removed the corpses of their collegues from the hospital’s morgue.

    The Nation gathered that the angry students threatened to make the hospital uncomfortable should it insist on collecting N20,000 per corpse before the dead students would be released to their families.

    The enraged students stormed the private hospital’s morgue and evacuated their dead colleagues forcefully without paying and moved them to the morbid anatomy unit of the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital(OOUTH) Sagamu.

    The Police had a hectic time trying to keep the students under control.

    Head of the teaching hospital’s Morbid Anatomy and Histopathology Department, Dr Deji Agboola, told The Nation that after combing private morgues in Sagamu, the remains of the affected students were located at Ade Maternity Home by noon.

    He said the angry students refused to yield to the demand for payment by the hospital before the corpses of their colleagues could be released.

    The Nation contacted Ade Maternity Home and a man in charge of its morgue who identified himself as Bayo Fasanya said that the corpses were that of the students of OOU and have all been taken away.

    He noted that calm had return at the hospital but rued that nobody had yet paid him.

    He told the reporter that the Sagamu Area Command of the Nigeria Police Force had said he should let him see the morgue’s service bill when it is ready.

    Earlier on Saturday, Agboola, an associate professor and who also doubles as the Chairman of the OOU branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities(ASUU), said grieving relatives had initially besieged the OOUTH, thinking the victims were kept there.

    Agboola added that he, the Head of the Students Affairs and Chief Security Officer of the institution decided to comb private morgues in Sagamu in search of the remains of the student – victims of the accident until they were found at Ade Maternity morgue.

    Over a dozen students of OOU were crushed to death and others gravely injured on Friday at Sagamu corridor of Lagoss – Ore expressway when an unlatched 20-feet container from a moving truck came off and fell on the roof of a psssenger bus conveying them.

    The weighty container press – pinned the bus to the ground killing the passengers in the accident which involved a truck marked (LAGOS) BDG 779 XE and a Toyota Haiace passenger bus bearing (Lagos) XV 311 MUS.

    It was learnt that the OOU students were travelling to Lagos state for the weekend when they met their untimely death.

  • Students go mountaineering

    Students go mountaineering

    Students of the Department Political Science of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, Osun State, on Saturday, went on a mountaineering expedition as part of activities to welcome freshers and returning students back on campus.

    By 7am, students converged on Anglo-moz Car Park to climb the mountain, which is situated behind Social Sciences Car Park on the campus.

    To make the experience memorable, the students set up sound system to entertain themselves on the mountain top. There was also refreshment for the participants.

    A 300-Level student, Miftau Adebowale, said the exercise was an avenue through which students would get familiarised to one another.

    “We must praise members of executive of Political Science Students’ Association for organising the event,” Miftau said.

    A fresher, Alaba Awodeyi, described the trip as educative and interesting, saying he would never forget the experience.

    The expedition also featured a dance contest for the freshers; Lizzy Adebayo was adjudged the winner of the contest.

    Lizzy said: “I did not believe I could dance the way I did. I started well and ended wonderfully. I thank the association for the event but they should not relent in organising more of this event in the future.”

    Oluwatobiloba Elusope, who participated in the contest, said she expected her to win. “I was surprised I did not win despite my entertaining dance steps. But, it was all fun because I had opportunity to meet people from other backgrounds.”

    Paring the association for the mountain trip, Oluwatobiloba said she was not aware there is such a mountain within the university.

    “I could not imagine OAU has such a nice and wonderful place to visit. I use this opportunity to plead to the school authorities to make the mountain more beautiful for tourism. If the school can harness the tourist potential of the mountain, I believe it would increase the internally-generated funds of the university,” she said.

  • Better library excites Redeemer’s students

    Better library excites Redeemer’s students

    The Redeemer’s  University (RUN)  main Library has been fitted with more funiture, making it more conducive for learning.

    The students are excited with their “new improved library”.

    Since the school moved to its main campus in Ede, Osun State, few months ago, the library has been without enough reading chairs and tables. Things changed last week when the furniture were supplied.

    The development excited students, who described it as a breakthrough for the school.

    The school librarian, Dr Emmanuel Adebayo, said management took the step to lessen burden of students, who, he said, had been battling stress because of lack of reading furniture in the library. He disclosed that the chairs and tables were ordered last year from China but the consignment could not be delivered because of delay.

    “Students passed through a lot of stress last semester, because of lack of furniture in the school library. They could only borrow books, read them in their rooms and return them. All that has ended with the fitting of the library with furniture. I am happy that the management has overcome the challenge,” he said.

    A staff of the library, Mr Daramola Oluwafemi, said the library could now be used comfortably by students. “The chairs and tables are of high standard and modern design. The institution is gradually on the path to becoming a world class institution,” he said.

    Oluwafemi hailed the management for the feat, advising the school to also provide more books to the library shelves.

    A 300-Level of Mass Communication student, Mayowa Oguntade, described the development as good omen. She said: “We can now sit in the library and read our books comfortably.”

  • Students promote culture

    Memories of the cultural fiesta organised by students of Elizade University, Ilara-Mokin, Ondo State as part of the maiden Students’ Week would linger for a while.

    The event featured cultural dance competition, inter-ethnic cooking competition and showcasing of traditional setting, the entire university community was entertained as students let viewers into their unique culture.

    In the dance competition, Ibo and Yoruba tribes came first. Dressed in traditional attires, the two tribes showed their dancing steps, rhythm and composure to the satisfaction of the judges. Edo/Delta/Rivers came second with Akwa Ibom group coming fourth.

    Cooking competition brought a change in fortune to Edo/Delta/Rivers group, which prepared four varieties of delicious dishes. Yoruba and Akwa Ibom came second with Ibo coming third.

    In the exhibition of tradition of setting, it was difficult choosing a winner. Yoruba students built their palace with their King gorgeously dressed on the throne of his forefathers with his “irukere” in his hand and surrounded by his three Oloris (wives).

    The Ibo students constructed their palace in a unique way that assigned a strategic portion for their Igwe who sat on the throne with his wife beside him.

  • Club urges students on research

    Research is key to the survival as a nation because it benefits the generality of the people and proffer solutions to developmental problems. These were the words of Greg Emokpai, chairman of Pharmaceutical Research Club (PRC) during the club’s maiden research seminar held at the Lecture Theatre III of Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Benin (UNIBEN).

    The event was to enlighten students and lecturers on the benefits they could get from carrying out productive researches. Participants were also told how to carry out thorough research, using some set principles and standards.

    Speaking on Survival of women folks in contemporary times, Dr. E. Bafor of the Department of Pharmacology urged female students to embark on research that would save feminine gender from societal problems. She explained how she made efforts to carry out some researches that earned her a doctoral degree in pharmacology.

    Her words: “Women need to get involved in research. There are so many interesting parts about the feminine gender, which men may not want to delve into due to religion, morality or other personal reasons. But as ladies, you may not find those reasons tenable because you are familiar with them.

    During my PhD studies, only a handful of researchers had done studies on the uterus. This made me encounter many difficulties but I never gave up. I was able to isolate some 16 compounds that had effect on the uterus and six of them were new to the humans.”

    She urged the students not to relent, saying they could go conduct their researches during long holidays. She added: “Research is good but it is not being fully utilised in Nigeria. When you go to other countries, whatever you discover becomes their property and the credit is given to them.”

    She revealed her plans to float a research platform called ‘My Summer Research Programme’. She said the scheme would enable students to carry out researches during holidays.

    Prof Ray Ozolua encouraged the student not to give up, saying some researches may be expensive but students could carry out findings without spending much.

    The chairman of the club, Greg Emopkai, said the club was set to create platform that would enable students express their curiosity, as well as put up a better translation to their discoveries, which were ignored.

    He said the club was poised to set the pace in research, noting that students were about to carry out a research on the cases of ulcer on the campus.

    “Ulcer is a common problem on the campus; we are set to carry out a research on its cause and the solutions. It is high time we let the school community feel the presence of pharmacy students around,” he said.