COVID-19: Education transformed through remote learning
A new collaboration between UNICEF and HITCH will provide a much-needed boost to children’s education during the COVID-19 pandemic through a dynamic online/offline educational and vocational video platform
The closure of Nigerian schools amid the COVID-19 pandemic has led to more than 50 million children remaining at home.
With an education system already burdened with low participation and learning achievements, the closure increases the challenge for children’s education and has the potential to set back recent gains in bringing children back to school if adequate action is not taken.
In its response to COVID-19, the Federal Ministry of Education sought to mitigate the immediate impact of the pandemic by using online and offline platforms, television, radio and take-home materials to keep children learning. UNICEF Nigeria has supported the Ministry throughout this process.
But now a new collaboration between UNICEF and HITCH will provide a much-needed boost to children’s education during the COVID-19 pandemic through a dynamic online/offline educational and vocational video platform designed especially for Nigeria.
HITCH’s e-learning tool has been customized for the Nigerian curriculum and has the potential to transform teaching and learning, and make classroom learning a dynamic experience at home.
“This collaboration is an excellent opportunity to ensure children continue to learn both during and beyond the pandemic. The learning package ensures children can access online fit-for-purpose resources, organised by their levels and grades. It also equips teachers to be collaborators and facilitators of learning – rather than just remote instructors. This is a much-needed support for the education system and for teachers themselves,” said Euphrates Efosi Wose, UNICEF’s Chief of Education.
"HITCH is a revolutionary e-learning tool designed specifically for Nigeria, which ensures that students – from Primary 1 all the way through SSS3 – can access video resources that will ensure they don’t miss out on their education,” said Uche Onuora, Co-founder of HITCH.
“As COVID-19 has clearly shown, to move Nigerian education forward, we need to be flexible and open to new ways of both learning and teaching. Sometimes, necessity is the mother of invention, and we hope that this learning tool will not only ensure Nigerian student do not miss out on their education now, but also create a system for lifelong, quality learning for years to come,” said Uche Onuora.
About HITCH
HITCH works closely with Teach for Nigeria to evaluate and select educational videos that best match Nigerian curriculum requirements. Working with strategic partners like the Mastercard Foundation, HITCH is enabling a community of experienced Nigerian educators and welcomes teachers who want to integrate digital resources into their work or contribute to development of the platform. For more information, visit https://www.hitch.video/UNICEF. Follow HITCH on Twitter and Instagram.
