By Philip Yatai
Excitement was visibly written on the faces of some primary school teachers in Kaduna State on Monday as they touched and operated the computer for the first time ever.
The 25 teachers had undergone a five-day digital literacy training programme organised for primary school teachers in Chikun Local Government Area of the state.
The training was organised by Emerald-Isle Foundation (EIF) under its “Train-the-Tutor’’ project, designed to improve the capacity of teachers.
It was organised in partnership with the Kaduna Basic Education Accountability Mechanism, IHIFIX Foundation, Queen Amina College, and Leadership, Effectiveness, Accountability and Professionalism (LEAP) Africa, a youth-focused leadership development non-profit organisation.
The Coalition of Associations for Leadership, Peace, Empowerment and Development is another partner in the training programme
One of the teachers, Ms Kasham Tanko, who teaches a Primary Four class at Local Government Education Authority Primary School, Sabon Tasha, said the training was a game changer for her.
The visibly-excited Tanko said: “Oh! Wow! Oh! Wow! To God be the glory. I participated in the training that has completely transformed me from a digital novice to a digital savvy teacher.
“Whenever I see a laptop computer, I used to ask myself, what is this? Not that I haven’t seen it before, but I had wondering how people operated it.
“To God be the glory, I have participated in the training and I am now able to do so many things on the computer.
“It is a rare privilege for me because I have never undergone any computer training before,’’ she said.
Tanko added that the training had improved her capacity to use Microsoft Word and PowerPoint applications to prepare lesson plans, notes and prepare presentations.
She commended EIF for the opportunity, which had enabled her to know how to source materials online to prepare rich lesson plans and notes using different online platforms.
Other participants told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that they had also seen computers in the past, but it was their first time of operating one.
Head Teacher of UBE Primary School Sabon Gida, Udawa, Mrs Debora Solomon, said her experience was “beyond description’’ having had the opportunity to operate a computer for the first time.
“This is my first time touching a computer since joining the teaching profession in 2007. Now I have learned how to use different tools and applications, including Google tools and other e-learning platforms.
“I have also learned how to use Google tools to interact with my teachers and hold online classes.
“The experience is so amazing, and thanks to Emerald-Isle Foundation; now I can do all these things on a computer,’’ she said.
