A social enterprise committed to democratizing access to digital education, Motivar has completed the first batch of its DigiAccess initiative, an online learning programme for secondary school students.
The pilot implemented in Christ School, Ado Ekiti, graduated 33 students and introduced them to a wide array of tools and resources to learn online effectively.
The founder, Mayowa Olajide Akinleye highlighted the transformative potential of digital education.
He said, “The world is now global. Talent is now global. It is possible today to live in Ilejemeje, Ikere, or Ado and earn global value for your skills. But the ability to leverage these opportunities is enabled by education, and in this case, digital education. A unique set of abilities that empowers you with the capacity to find knowledge you need online and sit down to teach yourself.”
Over five weeks, the successful students explored various fields including artificial intelligence, web design, UI/UX design, video editing, cybersecurity, digital marketing, and data analytics. For about 70% of the participants, this marked their first experience with online learning.
One of the enthused beneficiary of this initiative noted: “I learned about generative AI. Most importantly, I learnt video editing, making use of Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe After Effects, and how to create green screen effects.”
Another participant shared their experience: “I learned how to use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create a website. I also learned how to use GitHub to upload my website online and how to get a free domain.”
In her comments, Mrs. Apata Modupe, the Principal, Christ Girls School, expressed her gratitude
According to her, “We are thankful for this initiative. It’s not just about the skills; it’s about expanding our students’ horizons and showing them what’s possible in the digital world. And we are excited to have played our part to deliver this for them.”
Mr. Olatunde Akinyemi, the Vice Principal, Admin of Christ School, added, “The support we provided every step of the way has been instrumental in making this program a success. We look forward to seeing how our students will apply these new learnings.”
The success of the DigiAccess pilot sparked discussions about scaling up the initiative. And Mayowa, highlighted that the success of the work leveraged on previous interventions of Nigeria Communications Communication, Christ School alumni, and the World Bank funded AGILE project to provide digital infrastructure in the school.
“This underscores the impact of organizations like ours, and a key lesson that it is not enough that infrastructure is provided, even if it is usually the hardest component, there must also be systems in place to maximally operate that infrastructure.
We must scale programs like DigiAccess statewide, funded by government and community-led support to operate this infrastructure and maximize outcomes for all our students.”
Reflecting on the program’s impact, he concluded: “This training is not what will make them into Bill Gates, but it’s a seed, a seed that if nurtured, watered may become for them an oak that feeds them all their lives. And if not, we have in a small way increased their capacity to dream. And that is enough and what I am proud of.
The Permanent Secretary, Ekiti State Ministry of Education, Mr Mike Omolayo, in his remarks reaffirmed the commitment of the state government to providing requisite infrastructure and scaling digital initiatives in the state.
He further added that “Young people today use digital access for nefarious purposes, but I believe you have now learnt that you should and must use it for learning. To complement what you are taught in class and even further. The opportunities are boundless.”
Christ School is the first of five secondary schools Motivar intends to reach before the end of the year. The DigiAccess program is executed with support from Innovate UK.
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