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NUT Wants Improved Teachers, Students Training In ICT
The Chairman of Nigeria
Union of Teachers (NUT) in Enugu State, Mr Chumaife Nze, has called for improved training of teachers and students in Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
Nze made the call in an interview with newsmen in Enugu.
He said most candidates who recently sat for examination for admission into universities were not familiar with the use of computers.
The chairman expressed the belief that their poor performance was due to poor knowledge of ICT and dying reading culture.
He advocated the employment of more ICT teachers and training and retraining of others for better performances in the Dual-Based Test (DBT) being used for UTME.
“The mass failure can be attributed to three major factors. If the students did not put enough efforts in their reading, there is no way they can expect miracles in their results.
“Secondly, JAMB has introduced the DBT mode where the use of computer is required and many students are not very attuned to the system.
“Students should be readily informed and educated on the system before the exams. The equipment should be available in schools so that students can practise and be effective in using it.
“Government should also train and retrain teachers to make them knowledgeable about the ICT programmes because one cannot give what he/she did not have’’, Nze said.
He said the DBT used for the examination was a technical device which required technical competence to operate.
He called on government, organisations and well-meaning Nigerians to donate computers to schools to help train the students in ICT before examinations.
However, some candidates who took part in the examination attributed the poor performance to time constraints.
Mr Chinonso Dike, who scored 152 points, said he would have done better if he was given enough time to conclude the examination.
“I live in Enugu but I was posted to Abakaliki for the exam. I got there when the exam had started but the officials did not give me extra time to finish. I wrote the exam under tension’’, Dike said.
Miss Grace Jibero, who said that her result was yet to be released, called for measures to tackle poor performances during JAMB examinations.
The Tide recalls that the JAMB Registrar, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde had while releasing the results, said only 47 out of over one million candidates who sat for the examination scored 250 points and above.
According to him, only 24 candidates scored 250 and above in the Paper-Pencil Test (PPT), while 23 candidates scored 250 and above in the DBT, out of 1,015,504 that applied for both modes.
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Nigeria Set To Host International Conference On Biotechnology
The Director-General of the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Prof Abdullahi Mustapha, has disclosed that Nigeria will be hosting International Conference on Biotechnology in June.
Mustapha, who made the disclosure recently in an interview with The Tide’s source in Abuja, said the conference would take place in June, adding that the agency was determined to introduce new things for the benefit of Nigerians.
“That is why we are organising this international conference where people across the globe will showcase what they are doing in their various countries in biotechnology. NABDA will also showcase what we are doing and had been doing to engage all our people in the country”, he said.
According to him, the conference would offer a platform where industries, private organisations, universities and others would have the opportunity to showcase their works.
The Director-General said the conference would be tailored around environment, industry, agriculture, genomics and bioinformatics as well as health.
Mustapha disclosed that he had inaugurated a committee toward organising the conference, adding that it had started work.
“The Nigerian policy on biotechnology was prepared in 2000, and I have seen that its about time to effect a change.
“This is imperative because the world is moving fast from what was regarded as the norm to a certain level of precision and accuracy in terms of investigations and deliverables”, he added.
He continued that Nigeria could meet up with advanced countries’ biotechnology as it could boast of scientists and experts.
“Whatever document we are going to produce is going to look at Nigeria and its projects in the next five to 20 years. This policy is what will drive Nigeria’s biotechnology to success”, he said.
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Expert Tasks Female Journalists On Content Creation
A digital media expert, Mr. Chimodo Paul, has charged female journalists in Rivers State to generate good contents in order to carve a niche for themselves in journalism.
He gave the charge at a one-day capacity building workshop held last Thursday, at the NUJ Press Center, Moscow Road, Port Harcourt.
The workshop, tagged, “Maximizing New Media Platforms: Upscaling Digital, Entrepreneur Skills of Journalists”, was organised by the Step-up for Women in Journalism Initiative (SWIJ), with support from Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) and the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Rivers State Council.
Paul urged the women to upscale their digital skills in order to enable them improve their career prospects and earning potentials.
He expressed dismay that ego had prevented some veteran journalists from upscaling their digital skills, which, he said, had deprived them from reaching their full potentials and becoming visible in the present new media era.
He also urged those stucked in old fashion media to start maximizing the social media tools.
The women was further challenged to invest in themselves by acquiring good digital gadgets, subscribe to online trainings, sponsor their good contents on social media platforms.
“Most journalists do not know how to maximize the new media platforms yet. Ego and pride is not allowing them to learn digital tools. This is the major reason they are where they are and it’s not helping to build and improve professional competence in this new media era”, he said.
He insisted that journalists must identify the social media tools that aligns with their line of job and build presence on it to gain from opportunities that abound from such tools.
“Social media has made it easier for journalists to collaborate on stories with other journalists, photographers, and videographers. Collaborations can help journalists reach a wider audience, tell more complex stories”, he stated.
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Expert Wants Telcos To Prioritise Improved QoS
A Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Policy Advisor, Mr. Jide Awe, has urged telecommunication operators to give priority to improving Quality of Services (QoS).
Awe, who is also the Founder of Jidaw.com, made the appeal in an interview with newsmen in Lagos State, recently.
He said it was necessary to improve the current poor QoS using strategic investment in infrastructure to support current and future needs.
Awe said the future needs included increased number of users and increased traffic volumes of transactions among others.
“Customer journey has evolved significantly over the years, largely influenced by the advancements in telecommunications technology.
“Customers now expect seamless and uninterrupted connectivity across multiple touchpoints, be it through their smartphones, laptops, or Internet of Things (IoT) devices”, he said.
Awe also noted that the telecoms industry was plagued with right-of-way charges, multiple taxation, and insecurity of telecoms infrastructure.
According to him, addressing these challenges is essential for consumer protection to ensure QoS standards are met, and that consumers receive the promised level of service quality.
The policy advisor added that solving the issues would also help in promoting affordable broadband services.
On the role of the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) as a regulator, he said the NCC needed to adopt an innovative, supportive, and visionary regulation approach that appreciated the importance of innovation and expansion.
“As new technologies continue to emerge, regulation cannot afford to be static. NCC should inculcate a spirit of innovation and growth in the sector.
“Innovative regulation helps to cultivate an environment that attracts investment to propel sectoral growth. Investor-friendly initiatives, simplification of regulations, strategic and disruptive thinking/approaches are crucial”, he said.
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