To address the problem of out-of-school children, the Lagos State government has embraced the digital platforms provided by United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to tackle the menace, especially in rural communities.
Speaking at a two-day media dialogue organised by the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in collaboration with UNICEF, the Director, Policy, Planning, Research and Statistics, Ministry of Education, Dr. Afolabi Adejare, cited the recently launched Nigeria Learning Passport (NLP), an online/offline platform designed to complement the existing system of impacting knowledge, teaching and learning.
Already, UNICEF, using the NLP platform, an initiative of the Federal and State Governments in partnership with the agency, has trained over 3,000 facilitators and provided tablets for indigent students to learn.
At the event themed: ‘Digital Learning Platforms,’ Adejare said the initiative would boost learning and also equip teachers with modern skills, especially audio-visual, which will reduce abstract learning.
He said: “NLP is a complementary platform used to boost the normal traditional learning system, and address learning issues in rural communities like Makoko and other suburbs.
“We have a large number of out-of-school children, and some, who are slow in assimilating; the NLP platform will help students listen, watch, learn and understand better what they are being taught in the classroom”.
He explained that the idea was to bridge the gap between the fast and slow learners, adding that every child can learn at his/her own pace, and also revise topics to make them understand and assimilate better.
Adejare explained that teachers are incorporated in the system, as they have the opportunity to teach students by projecting the contents, adding that children are able to learn faster with audiovisual materials.
Speaking with journalists, Programme Specialist, UNICEF Nigeria, Joannes Yimbesalu, emphasised on its ‘Youth Agency Market Place’ (YOMA) initiative, a digital platform, which allows young people connect, learn, create employment opportunities and build the future they want.
Yimbesalu explained that the platform is concerned about young people and gives them the leverage to be employable.
He said: “One of the key things is about targeting the most marginalised, and the focus is working with key stakeholders and the media to ensure that no child is left behind.”
He noted that many of the digital platforms have been effectively tapped by young people, hence UNICEF’s engagement with the media to help in promoting available opportunities in the digital platforms.
The Lagos State Director, NOA, Adetola Adegboyega, noted that in this digital era, youths must be technically inclined as academic certificates are no longer enough.