22nd June 2023

The Executive Secretary of the UBE Commission, Dr Hamid Bobboyi, represented by the Director of Internal Audit, Alh Rilwan Jaafar paid a visit to the UBE Model smart school in Tarda, Kano State. The Director was accompanied by the Acting Chairperson SUBEB and the Coordinator of the Kano State UBEC office.

The delegation was in the smart school to determine the extent to which teaching and learning activities were conducted during the pilot third-term phase. The representative of the UBEC Executive Secretary and his team while meeting with the Ubion team also appreciated Professor Hwang for their continuous support and collaboration with the Commission on the smart schools’ programme.

8th-11th August 2023

The training course was specifically designed for principals, ICT managers, head teachers, and heads of ECCDE (Early Childhood Care and Development Education). The course aimed to enhance their knowledge and skills in utilizing digital resources and technology slot gacor hari ini in education. The training also emphasized the importance of the role of technology in transforming education.

During the four-day exercise, various topics related to blended learning were covered through presentations. These included blended learning models, managing resources for blended learning, learning management systems, school management systems, leadership roles and responsibilities, digital literacy, digital security and safety, technology integration, and interactive teaching methods. Experienced educators and experts in the related fields delivered these presentations and provided valuable insights and practical strategies for operating in a technologically driven school system. Attendees had the chance to discover the newest educational technologies, explore digital resources, and learn innovative teaching methods.

The training course concluded with a closing ceremony, where participants received commendations from the resource persons and directors of SUBEB overseeing smart schools, recognizing their dedication and commitment to enhancing their digital literacy skills. The event also provided an opportunity for reflection and feedback, allowing participants to share their thoughts and suggestions for future training initiatives.

5th-9th June 2023

Through its Digital Resource Centre, the Universal Basic Education Commission provided a five-day technical support activity for the UBE Model Smart School in Ilorin, Kwara State. A technical team of experts comprising UBEC DRC staff headed by Dr Hafsat Lawal Kontagora and 4 resource persons visited the Smart School in Ilorin, to conduct the exercise which included; technical observation, assessment, mentorship and the provision of support to the teachers who have been trained on the blended learning techniques, particularly the utilization of the Station Rotation Model as well as the use of digital tools during lesson delivery.

The objectives of the Technical Support Session were to strengthen the capacity of UBEC smart school teachers for effective delivery of the teaching/learning content using the station rotation model, to identify core areas of challenges and immediately provide remedial interventions, to obtain a first-hand understanding of core administrative issues and their impact on the academic programmes of the UBEC Smart School. The exercise was also designed to provide technical support services to teachers and education managers for improved performance.

The exercise was successful as both field officers, a technical team of experts and teachers jointly explored creative ways to implement the station rotation model. It is expected that gains from the exercise should be effectively harnessed for the efficiency of the smart school academic activities.

30th May 2023

The Digital Resource Center held a meeting with the Department of Academic Services to chart a course for the commencement of operations of its e-learning programme by September 2023. The meeting agenda also consisted of providing updates on the smart schools and E-learning programmes, mapping out strategies towards the utilization of the e-learning laboratories in the states and planning ways forward towards the successful implementation of the e-learning programme.

The meeting was informed that the Executive Secretary is expecting the e-learning programme to start activities by September 2023. To that end, deadlines need to be set and met to achieve results in both the smart schools and e-learning programmes. Currently, a pilot third term is being run in Kano and Kwara smart schools with minimum requirements after the teachers were sufficiently trained to function in those schools. In that regard, the e-learning programme may wish to equally adopt a pilot phase in some of its centers.

At the end of the meeting, it was concluded that the DRC can assist the e-learning programme in the aspects of; Teacher training, Content development and the development of a viable ‘model’ for the e-learning centers to strengthen the system and start the implementation of the e-learning programme by September 2023.

3rd May 2023

The DRC met with the Center for the Study of Economies in Africa (CSEA) which is an independent non-profit organization established in 2008 by Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, former economic coordinating Minister and Honourable Minister of Finance in Nigeria. The Center conducts independent high-quality applied research for improving the education system and economic issues in Nigeria and the rest of Africa. The center is also geared towards facilitating the adoption of Edu-Tech in 10 African countries.

Currently, the CSEA is focused on identifying key government and non-government agencies to partner with, particularly as it relates to the application and utilization of Edu-Tech in Nigeria. During the meeting, the CSEA team explained that UBEC is considered a key stakeholder in that regard, therefore, the DRC as the unit in the Commission focused on the provision of digital-based education, research and training was targeted for the interactive meeting. The National Coordinator, DRC, Prof. Bashir Galadanci was later engaged in an interview session via prepared questionnaires where topics relating to the utilization of Edu-tech, especially post-covid in the basic education sector were tackled.

The CSEA team were also enlightened on the activities and achievements of the DRC which included the adoption of a new learning approach utilizing edu-tech, the smart schools’ programme, the conduct of a series of training activities, etc. The meeting/interview sessions yielded positive outcomes as the team was delighted with the responses elicited from the DRC. In the end, they were taken around the DRC office building by the National Coordinator to be better informed about the activities that take place in each of the offices.

2nd-6th May 2023

UBEC through the DRC trained 19 Smart school personnel in Kwara and 20 in Kano States. The training was designed to adequately equip the smart school personnel with the requisite skills for the commencement of operations during the third term 2022/2023 academic session in the two states.

The training focused on Blended Learning techniques and ICT skillsets with Resource Persons from Universities, Polytechnics, and Colleges of Education serving as the trainers. The activity offered intensive specialized hands-on training on ICT skills as well as the concept and practice of Blended Learning to Principals, Teachers, Administrators, and ICT Personnel of the selected smart schools. Additionally, the training offered mentoring exercises for the trainees in both States.

The Commission earlier proposed a pilot third term in selected smart schools including Kano and Kwara States. The purpose of the third term is to avail UBEC the opportunity to test-run on a small scale some of the smart schools and identify challenges that may be encountered in the course of its operations and address them, before the beginning of the 2023/2024 academic session when other smart schools are expected to commence activities on a large scale.

28th March 2023

The Universal Basic Education Commission through its Digital Resource Center (DRC) organized a 5-day training workshop for newly deployed Principals, Headteachers, Heads of Early Childhood Care and Development Education (ECCDE), ICT Managers and Teachers of 5 model smart schools in selected states across the country. They include; Anambra, Gombe, Ekiti, Kano and Kwara States respectively.

A total number of 86 participants from; Anambra (18), Ekiti (19), Gombe (18), Kano (14) and Kwara (17) were successfully trained during the exercise. The training was conducted in a bid to facilitate the smooth take-off of the Model smart schools in the pilot 3rd term of the 2022/2023 academic calendar.

The activity offered specialized training on the concept and practice of Blended Learning and provided appropriate ICT as well as leadership training for different categories of Administrators, Principals, ICT personnel and teachers of the selected smart schools.

27th March 2023

In a bid to recruit the most competent individuals as headteachers, heads of ECCDE and ICT managers for the smart schools across Nigeria, UBEC invited the prospective candidates from 5 States to an interactive session with the DRC.

Each state nominated 4 candidates for each post and a team of panelists interacted with each of them to determine and select the most competent persons for the position based on established criteria. A total of 38 candidates from Anambra, Ekiti, Gombe, Kano, and Kwara States were in attendance.

It is gratifying to note that the selection process was very successful. However, it was worrisome that some of the prospective administrators and ICT managers showed very little ICT competency, therefore, they cannot effectively function in the model smart schools.

27th March 2023

In a bid to recruit the most competent individuals as headteachers, heads of ECCDE and ICT managers for the smart schools across Nigeria, UBEC invited the prospective candidates from 5 States to an interactive session with the DRC.

Each state nominated 4 candidates for each post and a team of panelists interacted with each of them to determine and select the most competent persons for the position based on established criteria. A total of 38 candidates from Anambra, Ekiti, Gombe, Kano, and Kwara States were in attendance.

It is gratifying to note that the selection process was very successful. However, it was worrisome that some of the prospective administrators and ICT managers showed very little ICT competency, therefore, they cannot effectively function in the model smart schools.