By jude nwaeni

The hypothesis that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) might raise the quality of life in developing nations pre-dates the evolution of the Internet. Telecommunication and the Internet are now on the policy “radar screen” in every nation and multinational organizations. Over the past two decades, there has been considerable debate over the extent to which ICT is transforming the economies of the world. Central governments, businesses and international organizations have invested heavily in ICT in anticipation of greater productivity increase and economic transformations.

To me and many others, the application of ICT is more relevant in the developing world like Nigeria because there are so many things which have not been done and which ought to be done in order to move the nation forward. A renowned professor G.O. Ajayi, OAU, Ile Ife, Nigeria, shared the multi-purpose application of ICT as he put it “ICT is now regarded as a Utility such as water and electricity and hence has become a major factor in socio-economic development of every nation. ICT now plays a major role in education, learning and research in general, agriculture, health, commerce and even in poverty alleviation by generating or creating new jobs and investment opportunities…” This declaration and indeed other opinions shared by others point to conclusive evidence that ICT has some real and material applications for countries like Nigeria because countries can leverage ICT to totally transform and modernise their economy. This publication therefore seeks to look at how ICT could enhance and improve education delivery in our educational system with particular emphasis on our tertiary institutions

Education is key to a knowledge economy and to compete effectively in global context, we need an educated and skilled labor force so as to create, share and use knowledge; vibrant system of research and innovation to be able to tap into global knowledge, assimilate and adapt it to our local need. One cannot rule out that knowledge and human capital are increasingly important to successful economies. The skills to productively transform knowledge and information into innovative products and services will largely define successful knowledge economies. Since knowledge and information have become the most important currency for productivity, competitiveness, increased wealth and prosperity, nations have and continue to place greater emphasis and priority on human capital development.

Governments in the world over are thus focusing on strategies to increase access to and improve the quality of education. Policy makers find themselves asking certain key question- what defines and constitutes quality education in today’s global information-based economy. Has education kept pace with a rapidly and technologically changing world? Are there good models for reforms that we can follow? The world today is different from what it was some decades ago. Comparing the past and the present bring to the fore an amazing technological advances in science, commerce, health care, transportation and many. Key competencies are changing rapidly and as such individuals need knowledge, skills, competencies to meet changing economic conditions, job requirements and technology, encourage risk taking, flexibility and adaptability so as to function independently, use tools interactively and work well with others.

However, education systems in Nigeria have not been well suited to the changing demands of open society and market economies. Knowledge economy issues vary for countries depending on size, technology position, economic situation and education levels of population but knowledge and education are important in every case. Critically looking at the classroom/lecture theatre some years back and today’s average classroom, you will discover that nothing substantial has changed. This is because students continue to use paper and pen/pencil in hand, teachers still write quite extensive notes on the blackboard where students furiously trying to copy all that is written and said, expecting to memorize all the facts and spit them out during exams. Even though much have changed as a result of advances and innovations of science and technology, education and the away students learn, and teachers teach have almost and largely remained unchanged.