Teaching must embrace modern technology –Faborode

A former vice chancellor of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile Ife, Osun State, Professor Michael Faborode, was one of the resource persons at the sixth Workshop on Teaching and Learning Methods in Higher Educational Institutions, a brainchild of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti (ABUAD). Professor Faborode, the ninth VC of OAU, who has also served as the secretary-general, Committee of Vice Chancellors (CVC), Nigeria, speaks with SAM NWAOKO on sundry issues around the management and sustainability of universities in the country. Excerpts:

What’s the significance of the Workshop on Teaching and Learning Methods in Higher Educational Institutions?

A university is measured by several things, including the quality of the students and the quality of the staff. If you want to produce good students, you must ensure that your teachers are well trained in the methodology of teaching, so that they can impart the knowledge to students in the best way possible. So, the workshop in ABUAD is well-intentioned and it’s supposed to be held in all the universities on annual basis so that lecturers, both new and old, are refreshed and brought to know new methods and be strengthened in the pedagogy of teaching.

What then are your expectations after this workshop?

I’m sure Afe Babalola lecturers would be strengthened in their capability to continue to deliver to the students; and since they already have very good standard, I’m sure the standard will continue to rise. You don’t rest on your oar; you keep on refreshing so that you will be on top of your game. I think that’s what Afe Babalola is trying to do.

On the level of the Committee of Vice Chancellors, what would you say is the commonest of the complaints among the vice chancellors in the country?

The Committee of Vice Chancellors just finished a conference at the Redeemer’s University, Ede, and all of them, including federal, state and private universities, were in attendance. The utmost concern of the community is that we must uphold the good standards of education, the quality. Of course, the problem of access is still there. We have so many students that want to enter university and still they are unable to. That will relate to the number of universities that we have. So, if there were enough universities, that would take care of the large number of qualified candidates qualified but who cannot gain admission to the university.

• My posting not political ― New Kwara CP

However, I’m sure when you asked that question, your thoughts might be funding. Of course, funding is a problem, but we have told the vice chancellors not to regard funding as the all-in-all problem but to see it as a challenge they must address. The utmost is that they must ensure that the quality of teaching and learning in the university is upheld. So, access is still a very great challenge in Nigeria.

Looking at infrastructure too, what would be your take? Are we there yet?

When we talk about access or quality, you know you can only give quality teaching when you have quality infrastructure; when you have high quality teachers. That’s the essence of and the need for more of such workshops as the one we have in ABUAD. With that, the teachers would be on top of their game. But they can only be on top of their game when they have facilities to back them up. This is because increasingly, teaching must embrace modern technology. You cannot be talking to students as you did even five years ago. Students now have access to a lot of information and so, if you don’t keep your lecturers on top, students would lose interest in teaching. That is still a very high challenge.