Vanessa Onyema: E-Learning – The Academic Revolution in Nigeria

Everyone knows the bitter truth – we are not particularly taught everything in school and we do not always become what we studied to be.

The difference between a lay man and an equipped one is access to information.

I wanted to cast my net further into the ocean of literature and graphics illustration, but due to the time required and my scientific training, there no opportunity to go to the best schools in the UK for literature and France for my art. I knew that this was something I wanted to equip myself with, but I did not know how.

I sat with a mentor and showed him a couple of my work. He was amazed, but not impressed.

“You are gold but you need to be more refined. Why don’t you take courses online?”

“I can do that? ”

“Why not. There are hundreds of untapped information out there. It’s not something you Google. It’s not a PDF file you download. It’s the whole work you get for a small fee; and you know what is best? Most come in digital and audio formats”

I pondered on this for a while and I thought maybe he had a platform or maybe he wrote some books online; it was nothing of the sort. This was a gospel I didn’t think I was ready to hear.

Why?  Because, I wouldn’t get them for free…

Thinking about it, a lot of free stuff do not get you anywhere. In order for you to get more out of life you just have to pay the price.

I got surfing and found a few, Coursera, and DoviLearn – which was surprisingly run by a Nigerian.

A young Nigerian in this harsh economy, developed an E-learning portal, and I am just here doing what? I became challenged.

Imagine if you had more opportunity to be the best you can,  in what you set up yourself to do – irrespective of no matter the trade. There is nothing you say you want to do, that no one has done or will do; nothing is new. What sets you apart is your uniqueness –  your ability to find something distinct that can make you outstanding in your quest to achieve success.

Nothing ever comes overnight; hard work and an unquenchable flame for knowledge propels you further to the pinnacle of your career.

E-learning makes learning easy, accessible and affordable to a great number of people who are not opportune. The world moves at a fast pace; the internet, mobile phones, social media networks have made accessing and sharing information very easy.

E-learning will serve as an academic glue to mend the disruptive educational foundation.

E-learning, in a fast developing country like ours, will give us rich knowledge, and help build entrepreneurs.

E-learning will help reduce the sad ideology that Africans don’t read books.  Africans don’t have access to the right information; we are eager and ready to learn.

E-learning is a wake up call to us all;  you can be a master at your craft by seeking more knowledge and understanding. It is seeking to be not just what you do, but to become what you do.

Jean Piaget once wrote “The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover, to create men who are capable of doing new things.

Photo Credit: Kadettmann | Dreamstime.com