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Federal government is partnering with Anthology, a notable Artificial Intelligence (AI) tech company in the world, on blackboard technology, to aid learning efficiency.
The minister of education, Prof Tahir Mamman, while receiving in his office, the Anthology delegation in Abuja yesterday, said the partnership would leverage on the limitations of physical capacity of learning and the inability to access credible learning materials. Mamman pledged to provide necessary support that would facilitate the progress of the blackboard in the country.
“I am a firm believer of technology; I believe in the efficacy of what we can use technology to achieve. We are at the beginning of major reform in the education sector from the basic levels to the tertiary levels. We know that physical capacity is a limiting factor but through IT, you can reach practically everybody and we are determined to do it,“ he said.
Earlier, the executive secretary, Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Sonny Echono, explained that the blackboard would establish centres of excellence in Nigeria that would be a benchmark for online learning methodologies. Echono said it would also help the country to be at the forefront of learning management systems, saying that „what happened during COVID would not catch us unawares again“.
He added that the blackboard would enroll about 2.2million student users in Nigeria across the 253 institutions. He said they plan to enrol other private institutions to increase the target to 3million students. Meanwhile, the president of Anthology, Joe Belenardo, said the blackboard had been tested to provide solutions to students and directors of ICT around the world through skills.
Belenardo explained that the blackboard, a learning management system, currently has about 6,000 clients and 150 million students globally and is designed to create additional solutions/innovations, access to networks and give business development opportunities for learners.
According to him, with ICT skills, they will make a difference in making the world a better place. Also, the country director and Channel Partner for Anthology Nigeria, Mr Ladipo Adedeji, explained that the system allowed students to function adequately both online and onsite.
(leadership.ng)
