Teachers should embrace Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a tool for better education, not fear it as a threat, speakers said yesterday at the 59th National Conference of Delegates of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in Enugu.
Themed: ‘The Deployment of Technology and Artificial Intelligence in Education Will Erode the Place of Teachers in the Classroom: A Myth or Reality?’, the conference held at the International Conference Centre.
Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, said AI could help teachers prepare lessons, personalise learning and identify gaps, but could not replace human qualities. ‘The future is therefore not teacher versus technology. The future is teacher with technology,’ he said.
He said Enugu had spent over 33 per cent of its budget on education across three budget cycles, recruited 6,850 teachers and other staff, and was building Smart Green Schools in its 260 wards. He called for ethical standards, data protection and continuous training for teachers.
The keynote speaker, Prof. Steve Nwokeocha of the African Federation of Teaching Regulatory Authorities, agreed that the fear was real but should be met with adaptation and professional development. ‘Computers will not replace teachers, but teachers who use computers will replace those who do not use them,’ he said.
Kebbi State Governor Nasir Idris, a former NUT national president, said his administration owed no salaries, pensions or gratuities. He said it had absorbed over 5,000 professionals into the permanent civil service to end casualisation, and built, renovated or furnished more than 2,000 schools. He said he extended teachers’ years of service from 35 to 40.
The Executive Secretary of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), Dr Aisha Garba, said technology should complement teachers. She said UBEC had established 37 Smart Model Schools and 74 Digital Learning Centres.
The NUT National President, Comrade Audu Titus Amba, called for more funding, better welfare and stronger protection of schools against insecurity. He named poor pay, teacher shortages, dilapidated infrastructure, underfunding, insecurity and the digital divide as the main challenges.