ABDAM COMPUSERVE E-EDTECH

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Educational institutions (schools, colleges, and universities) in Nigeria are currently based only on traditional methods of learning, that is, they follow the traditional set up of face-to-face lectures in a classroom. Although many academic units have also started blended learning, still a lot of them are stuck with old procedures. The sudden outbreak of a deadly disease called Covid-19 caused by a Corona Virus (SARS-CoV-2) shook the entire world. The World Health Organization declared it as a pandemic. This situation challenged the education system across the world and forced educators to shift to an online mode. Many academic institutions that were earlier reluctant to change their traditional pedagogical approach had no option but to shift entirely to online teaching–learning.

PROPOSED SOLUTION

EdTech Start-ups are tapping all the right opportunities by providing free online courses to students amidst this crisis. UNESCO also suggested that these EdTech Start-ups and learning apps can help students during such hard times. Now, in this pandemic outbreak, EdTech start-ups are hoping for improved performance. EdTech start-ups are trying hard to make most out of this situation by providing several free courses and e-resources to the students. Although the availability of electricity and a stable internet connection is still a bigger challenge in their way as a lot of Nigerian cities especially small cities still face frequent electricity shortages. 

CHANGE OF THE PROPOSED SOLUTION

1. This crisis will be a new phase for online learning and will allow people to look at the fruitful side of e-learning technologies. This is the time when there is a lot of scope in bringing out surprising innovations and digital developments.

The deadly and infectious disease Corona Virus also known as Covid-19 has deeply affected the global economy. This tragedy has also shaken up the education sector, and this fear is likely to resonate across the education sector globally. The Covid-19 pandemic outbreak forced many schools and colleges to remain closed temporarily. Several areas are affected worldwide and there is a fear of losing this whole ongoing semester or even more in the coming future. Various schools, colleges, and universities have discontinued in-person teaching. As per the assessment of the researchers, it is uncertain to get back to normal teaching anytime soon. As social distancing is preeminent at this stage, this will have negative effects on learning opportunities. Educational units are struggling to find options to deal with this challenging situation. These circumstances make us realize that scenario planning is an urgent need for academic institutions. This is a situation that demands humanity and unity. There is an urgent need to protect and save our students, faculty, academic staff, communities, societies, and the nation as a whole.

A lot of issues are attached to online education but we cannot ignore the perks of it in times of such crisis. We can always have solutions to fix these difficulties. Technical difficulties can be solved through prerecording video lectures, testing the content, and always keeping Plan B ready so that the teaching–learning process cannot be hampered. Online courses should be made dynamic, interesting, and interactive. Teachers should set time limits and reminders for students to make them alert and attentive. Efforts should be made to humanize the learning process to the best extent possible. Personal attention should be provided to students so that they can easily adapt to this learning environment. Social media and various group forums can be used to communicate with students. Communication is the key when it gets difficult to try reaching out to students via texts, various messaging apps, video calls, and so on. Content should be such that enable students for practice and also hone their skills. The quality of the courses should be improved continuously and teachers must try to give their best. Online programs should be designed in such a way that they are creative, interactive, relevant, student-centered, and group-based.

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