By Godfrey AKON
The Universal Basic Education Commission, UBEC, has said N600 million is estimated as the cost of constructing each model smart school with ICT infrastructure in the six geopolitical zones of the country.
UBEC made the announcement in a statement by its Head of Public Relations and Protocol, Mr David Apeh, stating that smart schools, totalling 37, will be constructed in all states of the federation with each of the schools estimated to cost about N350 million.
The commission noted that the emergence of its smart school initiative was the result of the impact created by Covid-19, which led to a prolonged lockdown and closure of schools for nearly one year.
The statement further disclosed that the Executive Secretary of UBEC, Dr Hamid Boboyi, carried out the ground breaking ceremony of the UBEC Modern Smart School Program in Hadeja, Jigawa State, over the weekend.
Boboyyi was quoted as saying that “the Smart Schools were designed in categories to boost the use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) for teaching and learning with an estimated cost of N350, 000 per school for the state model while the Zonal model with more capacity and ICT infrastructure would cost 600 million to serve each of the six geopolitical zones in the country.”
The UBEC boss explained that during the period of COVID-19 lockdown, learners all over the country were at home and not learning because the face-to-face learning approach is the primary mode of delivering content to learners.
He stressed that it is necessary to prepare for any situation that could arise to disrupt the teaching and learning process, adding that digital and e- learning platforms provide opportunities for both teachers and learners without the constraint of time and space.
According to him, it is expected that deployment of technology for instructional delivery would significantly increase the quality of basic education indeed the Nations learning outcomes.
He further disclosed that UBEC smart schools are currently at the completion stages, stating that the plan is that before the end of this year, most, if not all, would commence academic activities.
“It is my expectation that the standard we are jointly setting up would be sustained and improved upon so as to meet the schools’ objectives,” he said.
