FG deploys virtual teachers to underserved schools nationwide

The Federal Government has launched a virtual teaching scheme designed to connect pupils in underserved schools without subject teachers to live remote instructors.

The move seeks to urgently bridge the widening manpower gap and improve access to quality education across the country.

Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, disclosed this on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Tuesday night. He explained that the initiative, titled ‘Inspire Live’, allows primary, junior secondary, and senior secondary school pupils to access interactive, curriculum-based lessons via a centrally coordinated online timetable.

With the current national learner-teacher ratio standing at an alarming 53.8 to one, the government hopes the technology-driven intervention will drastically reduce the burden on overloaded physical classrooms.

The minister, using Zamfara State as a practical example, stated that schools lacking an English teacher can log on during scheduled periods to receive instruction from a qualified professional.

The virtual platform covers the entire national curriculum, including core subjects such as Mathematics, English Language, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Civic Education, and Nigerian History.

“Any school, say you are in Kaura Namoda today and you don’t have an English teacher, you can go online and log on when that teacher will be teaching English,” Dr Alausa stated.

The Federal Government confirmed a strategic partnership with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), to resolve concerns over poor internet connectivity and the high cost of data in remote areas.

The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, stated that zero-rated data has been secured to ensure free access for pupils in rural communities.

Beyond the live teaching sessions, the platform also hosts pre-recorded lessons, enabling pupils to catch up on missed classes or restart previous learning at their convenience.

The government is also expanding capacity-building programs for existing educators through a separate cloud-based platform known as ‘Ignite’. The minister explained that Ignite empowers teachers with direct access to curriculum materials, advanced lesson planning tools, and continuous professional development resources to boost classroom efficiency.

Dr Alausa also revealed the implementation of a Teacher Preparedness Programme, which the Federal Government currently funds to support nearly 50,000 teachers nationwide. The data from the Federal Ministry of Education’s Digital Nigeria Education Management Information System underscores the severity of the crisis. Over 31.8 million learners in public schools are currently managed by just 592,077 teachers.

The shortage remains worse in specific northern and south-eastern states, with Kano currently recording 88 learners per teacher, Katsina 87.4, and Imo 82.2.