LASU VC wants more investment in teachers’ training

Prof. Ibilola Olatunji-Bello, Vice-Chancellor, Lagos State University (LASU), Ojo has called for more investment in training and retraining of teachers on technology.

She said this was necessary to make them fit to prepare learners for solving today and tomorrow’s problems.

Olatunji-Bello, keynote speaker, made this assertion at the 2022 World Teachers’ Day programme organised by Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), Otto/Ijanikin, on Wednesday, Lagos.

The theme of the lecture was “The Transformation of Education Begins with Teachers”.

She said that the reality of the education system was that there were so many teachers who found themselves in the profession by accident, not as a passion.

“Many are in this teaching profession because they have no other option, so we must continue to find ways to upskill them and make alternative provisions.

“Our teachers must therefore be trained with the use of technology not only to teach the learners, but to teach the learners to use technology.

“In LASU, during the COVID-19 lockdown, we continued to teach using technology, even though people were scared of it at the initial stage, but they gradually embraced it,” Olatunji-Bello said.

The Vice-Chancellor said that teachers must be amenable to change and pursue knowledge and skills in their profession.

“Governments at all levels must attract the best brains into the teaching profession through increasing their salaries and remuneration.

“I urge the federal government to make the payment of this commitment a priority while also meeting the demands of ASUU to allow our students return to school.

“In essence, all hands must be on deck to ensure that the teacher takes a place of pride by giving them the right training, retraining and support,” Olatunji-Bello said.

In her opening remarks, Prof. Bidemi Lafiaji-Okuneye, Acting Vice-Chancellor, LASUED, said that this year’s celebration had been designed to address a set of censorious challenges that were prevalent in the globe.

Lafiaji-Okuneye said that for national transformation to flourish, the society must be prosperous in knowledge, which was often sought and acquired through teachers.

“The task of teachers in transforming the society is to foremost transform the learners by effecting attitudinal change in them.

“Ironically, Nigerian educational system and teachers who play a cardinal role in the transformation of the society are beset with a plethora of bottle-necks.

“The challenges facing teachers must be properly looked into because if at all there is any hope for transforming our country, the key lies in the hands of teachers,” she said.