LAGOS – Dr. Victor Akinola, the Director of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education, Ijaniki, Lagos has urged teachers to use ICT as a platform for positive learning.
Akinola told newsmen in Lagos that greater percentage of students’ learning should be through the internet in order to limit negative activities on the internet.
He said that teachers should use the ICT effectively by giving students assignment on the internet, organise a group chat either on face book or WhatsApp.
“Automatically, there would be no time to explore other unhealthy sites on the internet and you are capturing them away from the vices of the society and the ICT, ‘’
He said that to discourage them from the use of internet is to “demote the student to the old order of learning which is inhumane.’’
The director said that Prensky 2004 has categorised the digital school into two which is the digital natives, and the digital migrants.
“Children could be regarded as ‘digital natives’ while parents and teachers could be regarded as ‘digital migrant’
“Today’s children are born into the ICT age they are growing with it and it has become part of them, so they could be regarded as the natives.
“While the teachers were mostly not ‘born into ICT age,’ but the ICT has become a necessity so as to meet up with the demands of the children,’’ he said.
According to him, institutions and schools should brace up to capture the interest of learners and support academics and community development.
He, however, proposed that various educational policies should be put in place starting from the teachers, parents, schools and various ministries to curb the excesses in the sector.
“ICT has come to respect anPresident Goodluck Jonathan individual’s difference, which makes student’s learn at their own pace through the use of the ICT,’’ he said.
