Prof. Uchenna Udeani, Director, Distance Learning Institute (DLI), University of Lagos, says Open and Distance mode of education is currently the most sought after, in the face of the ravaging Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Udeani told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Lagos that the development was contrary to past perceptions that the mode was inferior to the ‘face-to-face’ teaching method.

According to her, this public perception is part of the issues that will be discussed at the institution’s International Colloquium scheduled for Sept. 16 in Lagos.

The theme of the colloquium is: Recalibrating Open Distance Education and E-Learning for Resilient and Inclusive Education.

”One of the most disturbing challenges we have been facing concerning this mode of learning is that of public perception.

”The public perception is that this mode of learning is lower and an inferior brand of education, which is totally wrong and far from it.

”In the first place, you chose to live around the school or check into a boarding facility and be in class physically for the conventional ‘face-to-face’ because you have the time.

”But, because of another person’s perculiar circumstance, the person missed out at that time he or she could have been in school physically too, either because she got married or as a result of lack of funds amongst others.

”The person has bounced back to now pursue his or her education through the Open and Distance mode and then the public now call it all sorts of names, ranging from second chance education to inferior education and a lot more.

“I have been inundated with questions on a daily basis on how the physical mode of education could be compared to that of Open and Distance mode of learning.

“My response has always been in the affirmative. I have told them that the COVID-19 has brought to the fore, the inadequacies that abound in the country’s institutions of higher learning, especially in the area of infrastructure.”

Udeani, a professor of science education, stated that it was against this backdrop that the institute was bringing scholars and experts together, to share knowledge and come up with solutions to some of the challenges facing Open and Distance Education.

”So far, we have concluded arrangements for this much expected international colloquium with experts drawn from all over the world and within. As we speak, we already have about 250 participants, both virtual and physical.

”The theme captures two issues – global development and the COVID-19 pandemic.

”These two developments have changed the landscape of higher education institutions in the last one and half years. As you may already know, we are all used to the face-to-face type of instruction.

”All of us would have gone through this without going through our education on line and that has continued. For instance, we have Learning Management System in this university but it was hardly put to maximum use.

”It was only used by this institute and then the pandemic came, with no prescription to migrate the distance learning mode, which is virtual or online, and that is one landscape that changed,” she said.

The UNILAG DLI director added that institutions of higher learning were then forced to embrace online teaching and learning method, which proved to be quite challenging, as most of the institutions lacked the facilities to achieve that.

Udeani, however, added that because of the attendant lockdown and the inability to move around occassioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, online education became the only way to push the frontiers of learning forward.

According to her, the other landscape that changed learning is that of accessibility. It brought to the fore, efforts made in getting the population to accept the mode of learning and how opportunities to change careers that will come through education manifest.

”Therefore, with the importance and leverage that we have given to Open and Distance Education, people have seen that they can access learning without being physically in the classroom.

”They can access it from anywhere, even as they are working. So, the impetus of the Open Distance Education, has widened access of online learning and this has already created so much awareness on that.

”That is why we are looking at this colloquium as a meeting point for experts, both local and international.

”They will be dissecting open distance learning, to make it more inclusive, make it more resilient, to withstand disruptions that could be occassioned by work, conflict or another pandemic,” she stated.

Udeani stated that the colloquium was also expected to proffer solutions on how online access could be improved upon, for quality service delivery, as well as discover lapses in terms of skills and availability of digital tools.

She added that it would also seek to find out the level of availability of internal capacity, as well as how much was needed externally.

”We also expect to find out the level of instructional design lapses, because digitalising learning entails a lot of things. So, this colloquium is going to show us alot of trends; where we are now and looking into the future, how prepared we are.

”We should know that the future of online is here with us and the future is online. How we go about our jobs to ensure that we are ready for, may be, another pandemic,” she said.

The DLI director lauded the contributions and support received so far from the Federal Ministry of Education and her women affairs counterpart, other organisations, corporate bodies and individuals, for successful hosting of the event.

”May I also seize this opportunity to commend the Vice Chancellor of this university, Prof. Oluwatoyin Ogundipe, and the university management for the tremendous support given to us for the successful hosting of the event, come Sept. 16.

NAN reports that some of the key participants expected at the event include Prof. Pat Utomi who is to serve as Chairman, while Mrs Eugenia Abu is to serve as moderator.

Speakers and Discussants include Dr Neil Fassina, President, International Council for Distance Education, Emeritus Prof. Olu Jegede, National Open University (NOUN) Abuja and Prof. Moeketsi Letseka, UNESCO Chair on Open Distance Learning, University of South Africa.

Others are Prof. Yemisi Obashoro-John and Dr Akanimo Odon, Africa Strategy Adviser, Lancaster University, Lancaster, United Kingdom, among others. (NAN) www.nannews.ng