UG looking to capitalise on virtual classrooms

Mar 11, 2014 News

—as overhaul takes shape

The University of Guyana (UG) is poised to better utilise its space with proposed improvement works for which contracts were recently awarded.
According to Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor Jacob Opadeyi, “In my own assessment UG does not have a space problem. Instead, we have a space utilisation problem.”

Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand (centre) hands over the Curriculum Reform Contract to Vice Chancellor, Professor Jacob Opadeyi. Also in photo is Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Ms Delma Nedd

He noted that a segment of planned consultancy work at the university is intended to look at how the tertiary institution can better utilise its space. This, he noted, should cater to the university taking advantage of virtual classrooms.
According to Professor Opadeyi, the university has already been provided with equipment to facilitate virtual classrooms that can be used at both the Berbice and Turkeyen campuses. With virtual classrooms in place, the Vice Chancellor is convinced that students from the Berbice campus, for instance, can attend classes, virtually, with their Turkeyen campus counterparts. And according to Professor Opadeyi, “That facility will be extended to the Regions to support our online degree programmes.”
The university is slated to undergo major curriculum overhaul, which will be undertaken by the University of the West Indies Consulting Inc. A contract valued at US$499,243 was handed over to a representative of the entity on Thursday last by Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand. This money is expected to finance coordination and supervision of the reform process for 15 Bachelor’s degree programmes in the Science and Technology Faculties.
The project is drawing its funds from the US$10 million University of Guyana Science and Technology Support Project (UGSTSP). The total project sum represents a loan from the World Bank to the Government of Guyana which is being executed by the Ministry of Education in collaboration with the university.
And it is expected that the consultants will commence by conducting widespread consultations with stakeholders, both internal and external to the university, according to Project Coordinator Vedyawattie Looknauth.
These stakeholders, this publication understands, will include UG Departmental staffers, the private sector, non-governmental organisations, indigenous groups, students groups, community leaders, parents, among others.
According to Looknauth, the outcome of the consultations will be a Situational Analysis report along with recommendations of courses to be revised, updated and re-oriented. As such the consultants are expected to work closely with the faculties/schools/departments to complete the required revision along with accompanying instructional materials. The entire process, according to Looknauth, is expected to be completed within 36 months.
Speaking to the reform process, the Vice Chancellor noted, “This is to make sure that our curriculum is not only relevant but addresses the low carbon initiative strategies of the country.
In fact in addition to strengthening the university’s four Science and Technology faculties – Agriculture and Forestry, Natural Sciences and Technology and the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences – the project is also designed to help improve the quality of science education through curriculum reform, support for research in Low Carbon Development areas, improved physical infrastructure and capacity building.
Another contract valued at US$368,014 to undertake civil works at the university, that is, addressing physical laboratories, classrooms, buildings and office space with a modernise flair, was also handed over on Thursday last.
“The infrastructural project is something that is very important to us and one of the mandates we have given to one of the consultant companies is that the infrastructure should first of all be green technology.
“We have to take advantage of the winds so that we can cool our rooms very well…We have to reduce the use of energy in the buildings; the infrastructure must be safe and must be healthy,” disclosed Professor Opadeyi.
The contract to undertake the civil works component of the project was won by an Italian/Guyanese joint venture, Hydea in association with RPA Rossiprodi and sub-consultant CEMCO.
“We have a lot of work to do…the most important thing is the support of all our colleagues and when I asked the consultant how was the support when they went around I was told there was a high level of support from all our colleagues and we can’t wait for things to happen,” said the Vice Chancellor.
The rehabilitation works, this publication was told, is expected to commence by the third quarter of this year and is expected to attract a budgetary allocation of US$4.5 million.