IMPROVING QUALITY OF TEACHING IN A COLLAPSED UNIVERSITY SYSTEM

IMPROVING QUALITY OF TEACHING IN A COLLAPSED UNIVERSITY SYSTEM




BY





M.M. YUSIF
Department of Political Science
Bayero University, Kano



Paper Circulated to students of M.M. Yusif over the last Five Years




Reproduction by any means for the purpose of teaching and learning is strictly authorised. I hope that the source will be acknowledged


Content

1. Introduction
2. How to use internet to source reading materials
3. assessing students examination papers: Marking Scheme
4. Enhancing students capacity in learning through the use of computers, internet and e-mail
5. Introducing Team/Group work in large classes
6. Study guidelines for effective performance by students
7. How to make patterned notes from Texts
8. Writing Examination: A Communicative Approach
9. How to write group semester paper in large classes
10. How to write Book Review
11. Communicative writing: Exploring the concept
12. Taking note in class lecture or from a Textbook
13. Using e-mail for teaching, learning and research
14. Using e-mail and e-book for learning, teaching and research
15. Code of Ethics in the class of M.M. Yussif

Introduction

The notes and or papers hereby compiled and bound are guides to students of the writer to enhance their capacity for learning and research.

They are the outcome of a deep reflection by an activist who spent the youthful years of his life in the University trying to address and correct the issues of collapse of the system.

Needless to stress, from the mid 1980s the University System in Nigeria had got into one crisis or the other until when the Structural Adjustment Programme collided with it that is had finally gone down. This is manifested by collapse of facilities, lack of funding and the most important issue of Academic Freedom had also gone with it. This has greatly affected standard of the education received by students.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities which I had been the chairman of the BUK chapter throughout all the years of this crisis has since then, despite of everything courageously fight at many fronts to correct the system.

A little on the path of recovery as a result of the work of ASUU. Funding has improved and also facilities. But academic freedom has refused to come back with its original principles and ethical grounds. It has been distorted by neo-liberalism. Therefore, it is used and abused.

It is possible that a higher standard and quality education to students will go along way to change the behaviour of students and their teachers so that we recreate a new community of scholars – students and their teachers. Many hands must be on desktop do that. One is that we the lecturers must be innovative.

This is what I have been doing for many years, with great sacrifice and because the collapse is been with us I do not care about recognition. Nevertheless, I am satisfied with plenty messages from my students who have passed out and now recognising the benefits of the training received. Some others who are still in the university observe that “The pattern note” system for example enhances their performance in every other area of their studies.

Some of the notes/papers attached here are exhibits of some of the innovations I introduced to my students. They are so many to be recorded as they differ from class to class and from session to another session. Some major ones include.
In a class of political science of final year, each students must write a poem
For the last four years I have introduced ICTs for teaching and research
Communication skills for teaching and research
A working group session on important issue relevant to the subject-matter of the course, on Nigeria
Each student is expected to read one recommended text each week and one report to the class
A theatrics performance on an important matter. For example the WTO mock summit which is now staged by students of political science has emerged out of this kind of exercise in a class of POL 4301 Military and Politics 2004/2005 session
There is always an open forum for eating and chatting
A small-research project as a group/team work
Another group would normally write a response paper on a small-research project of another group to report to the class
At the end of each semester each group writes a “critical comments on class room experience about the lecturer, his teaching and any other thing recommended to students to make observation.
A weekly Assignment is compulsory. The regulation is that any student who misses one weekly assignment would be assessed zero in the overall CA.
That plagiarism is also penalised by zero in the CA

The innovative measures are so many to be recorded here. As I thought in one poem composed for my students which is titled “The collapse is running away”, more measures will come to make it disappear.

M.M. Yusif
May, 2007