26th February-1st March 2024

The Digital Resource Center, UBEC held a 5-day training workshop for selected smart teachers on core foundational instructional design and multimedia content development. A total of 27 teachers, 3 from each school, participated in the activity.

The workshop had the goal of empowering teachers to create engaging, interactive gamified content and instructional materials for Smart Schools, E-Learning Centres and other public schools. To achieve this, a team of seasoned experts facilitated the training on various modules and conducted intensive practical sessions on instructional design, multimedia content authoring and gamified learning tools like MS PPT, Canva for Education, Inshot, Padlet, Socrative and Google Form. The training also included foundational courses like principles and models of instructional design such as ASSURE, Kemp and Universal Design for Learning principles, among others.

At the end of the workshop, each participant showcased a digital content sample. Thus, a homegrown approach to digital learning and content development was introduced. A solid foundation was also laid for building a pool of skilled educators for the UBEC digital learning content development drive towards improved teaching and learning outcomes in Nigeria.

21st-23rd February 2024

A three-day workshop was held to thoroughly assess and critique all digital content developed by Cinfores and Flexisaf, to ensure that they meet the required standards. As part of this appraisal, three teachers from each of the 13 functional smart schools were invited to participate in the exercise.

The Commission has made significant investments in the creation of high-quality, easily accessible digital content for smart schools, to be used for teaching and learning. Due to the large number of resources developed by content creators, it has become necessary to scrutinize and review this content to ensure that it meets the required standards of quality and relevance.

UBEC contracted two content development companies, Cinfores and Flexisaf, to curate high-quality digital resources. These resources include over 1000 digital content, such as videos, games, quizzes, virtual experiments, and animations among others.

19th-21st February 2024

The Digital Resource Center, UBEC organized a two-day leadership training programme for the administrators of eight operational Smart Schools in the country. The activity covered the rudiments of integrating technology in education and the principles of instructional leadership. In attendance at the training were the Principals, Headteachers, Heads of ECCDE and IT Managers of smart schools in Adamawa, Benue, Gombe, Kaduna, Katsina, Kwara, Niger and Osun States.

A similar training was conducted by the Korea International Corporation Agency (KOICA) for the administrators of the six KOICA-supported Smart Schools at the DRC from 10th–11th January 2024, as part of the terms of the MoU signed between UBEC and KOICA on the implementation of smart education in Nigeria.

Consequently, to cascade the same competencies down to the Smart School administrators and ensure uniformity in the Smart School system, a stepdown of the same leadership training for the eight non-KOICA-supported operational smart schools was conducted.

8th-9th February 2024

The Digital Resource Center UBEC organized a two-day workshop to collaborate with the Co-Creation Hub on setting up the DRC Teachers’ Lounge.

The Executive Secretary of UBEC in his remarks expressed delight to meet the officials of CC Hub during the workshop. He stated the need for a paradigm shift from the traditional method of education delivery in the country in line with global standards. He emphasized that to achieve this goal, Nigeria needs to proactively integrate technology into basic education delivery. He affirmed the commitment of UBEC in ensuring the change and collaborating with CC Hub is one of the steps in the right direction towards achieving this target.

CC Hub operates a teachers’ lounge that provides educators with a free space to collaborate and learn germane skills and competencies for improved teaching and learning. The lounge offers a unique learning experience for teachers through games, learning apps, co-learning sessions, and inquiry-based techniques to promote the adoption of effective teaching methodology in the classroom. These strategies are aimed at improving learning outcomes in the Nigerian educational system.

5TH February 2024

In furtherance of the collaborative partnership between the Universal Basic Education Commission and the World Bank, the Regional Director of the Human Resources division of the International Development Organization, Ms Trina Haque paid a courtesy visit to the Executive Secretary of the Commission Dr Hamid Bobboyi at the Digital Resource Center, UBEC. The visit aimed to strengthen the cordial relationship between the Universal Basic Education Commission and the World Bank.

The World Bank team lead expressed delight at the opportunity to engage with the Executive Secretary on the intervention programmes embarked on by the organization in the Commission and requested feedback and suggestions for improvement.

In his remarks, the Executive Secretary stated that the DRC was chosen as the location for the visit to showcase the newly completed state-of-the-art complex fully equipped with modern training facilities to ensure the capacity development of teachers and equip them with the skills and competencies required to deliver quality basic education to Nigerian children. The DRC will utilize modern technological methods to achieve this aim.

23rd-25th January 2024

The Digital Resource Center, UBEC attended the 2024 edition of the Eko-Konnect Users Conference in Lagos held at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Ikeja. The Head of the Technical Services Unit, DRC presented a paper on the National Digital Learning Policy (NDLP) during the Conference.

Eko-Konnect is an annual event that takes place to discuss ICT-related policy matters. The NDLP was initiated in 2020 to provide a framework for integrating technology into the education system in Nigeria due to the challenges occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic. Other presentations were made during the conference which highlighted the realities and challenges within the eco-system as well as recommendations on the solutions proffered by the key speakers.

Eko-Konnect is a non-profit organization in Nigeria that aims to improve network connectivity and collaboration between education and research institutions in Nigeria.

23rd-25th January 2024

The Digital Resource Center UBEC is seeking to collaborate with Imisi 3D to set up and run augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) laboratories at the Centre. The National Coordinator Prof. Bashir Galadanci explained this during a visit to their office in Lagos. The proposed partnership aims to provide DRC staff and smart schoolteachers with the necessary skills to operate the AR and VR equipment and improve their competencies. Additionally, it will enable the teachers to cost-effectively develop AR and VR content for learners.

Similarly, during a visit to the Co-creation Hub (CC Hub), the National Coordinator expressed the Commission’s eagerness to collaborate with CC Hub to replicate their Teachers’ Lounge concept. The Teachers’ Lounge is a free space where teachers can collaborate, learn skills, and improve their teaching competencies. The Commission is impressed with CC Hub’s achievements in the Ed-tech ecosystem and its efforts to promote creativity and innovation in education.

At the end of the visit, CC Hub was scheduled to participate in a workshop slated for 8th-9th February 2024 at the DRC, UBEC. The workshop will focus on recreating the teachers’ lounge at the DRC and will involve discussions, planning and the establishment of clear terms of partnership and collaboration.

11th-31st January 2024

The Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) conducted a 21-day training of 23 selected guiding teachers from the 6 KOICA-supported States. The teachers were drawn from Bauchi, Cross River, Ekiti, Kano, Nasarawa States and the FCT, Abuja.

The training was designed to develop the skills and competencies of the teachers in the aspect of digital literacy and the creation of digital content in the subject areas of Mathematics and Science. It also aimed to familiarize the trainees with the utilization of digital devices and the use of advanced applications in classroom lesson delivery.

The training was held as part of the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Nigeria through UBEC and the government of South Korea through KOICA in which it was determined that the capacity development of teachers in the subject areas of Mathematics and Science is a crucial component towards the improvement of access to quality smart education in Nigeria.

10th-12th January 2024

The Digital Resource Center, UBEC held a workshop to enhance the training courses on ICT and Blended Learning developed for participants in the Teacher Internship Scheme (TIS). The exercise also aimed to evaluate, critique and correct the visual design and content organization thereby improving engagement, comprehension and accessibility for the teachers. Facilitators with expertise in education and instructional design guided the critiquing process.

The Teacher Internship Scheme (TIS) is a program established by UBEC to enhance the skills of graduate teachers in smart education. The program will last for two years and recruits teachers from all across the country. Once enrolled, they are posted to smart schools or e-learning centers nationwide. The TIS has components such as mentorship, professional development, a Smart Education Primer Course, a postgraduate diploma, practical experience, a teaching assistantship and community service.

The Smart Education Primer course, coordinated by the Digital Resource Centre, will begin six months before the PGD program. The DRC collaborated with experts to develop training content for the interns which is being critiqued to ensure optimum quality and standard.