With the shutdown of academic activities in the Delta State due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the state government has introduced special long distance learning programmes for students of Junior Secondary School (JSS 111) and Senior Secondary School (SSS 111) on radio and television.
The programme which is in anticipation of possible start of external examinations shortly after the lockdown is lifted across the country.
The teaching programme which started on Monday, April 6, 2020, requires the students to tune their radio and television sets Mondays through Fridays at 9am to the designated broadcast stations and listen to tutors who teache a particular topic in a given subject, the lesson spanning 20 to 30 minutes each for the JSS and SSS classes.
The first part of the teaching session is devoted to JSS 3 class and their subjects while the second part is for SS3 class with a different teacher for each class.
The broadcast teaching is an initiative of the State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education in conjunction with the State Ministry of Information.
Speaking on the development at Ughelli, headquarters of Ughelli North Local Government Area, Mr Kelvin Akpochafo, an economist, commended the effort of the education ministry, adding that it would help the students’ memory to be fresh and updated in preparation for their exams.
“It is a good thing that the Ministry has done. It will help the children a lot,” he stated.
In her contribution, Mrs Grace Eturhoma, a headteacher, said, “The idea to arrange this radio/television class for the students is a very good one. The government has done well here. But let them increased the teaching period to at least, 40 minutes for each class in order to carry all the children along, both fast and slow learners. They should also intensify publicity on it so that every family in the State would hear about it and benefit from it.”
The designated stations for the broadcast classes include Radio Delta (Melody FM), Warri; Delta Rainbow Television (DRTV), Warri; Delta Broadcasting Service (DBS), Asaba; and Crown FM, Warri. On Crown FM, the broadcast lesson starts at 2.00 pm.
