Experts Seek Improvement of Learning Experience through Involvement of Psychologists

Rebecca Ejifoma

The founding president of the Association of Nigerian Educational Psychologists, Mrs. Eniola Olajobi, has stressed the importance of improving learning outcomes for 21st century learners.

At the unveiling of the association in Lagos State, Alajobi said it was necessary to involve education psychologists in school systems.

She said: “Education psychologists help to understand how children learn, what motivates them to learn, and why they behave the way they do.

“Building the capacity of educational psychologists which is the main aim of the association is central to the entrenchment of functional education in Nigeria.”

The founding secretary, Mrs Nkem Adeniran-Adedokun, said the event signified a progressive step towards improving educational outcomes in Nigeria.

The Special Education Director at the Lagos State Ministry of Education, Mr. Adeyemi Adebayo, noted that the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the shutting down of schools without viable alternatives for learning, exposed Nigeria’s failure to invest in education.

He, however, bemoaned that the pandemic had shown Nigeria’s failure to invest in education. “Although our children used online classes, the question is — did we prepare our teachers for that? Are our children aware that such will happen? Did we notice that our teachers were grappling such that they couldn’t even figure out how to help the children?”

Adebayo further urged everyone to understand that the need for technology is inevitable, adding that it is non-negotiable.

“Our children should learn the use of technology right from the school and the school should also prepare them for that,” he implored.

While citing a psychologist “If children don’t learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way they learn”, he hinted that it is high time teachers understood the psychology of this generation and adopt the methodology that works in this century.