UG students push back against online learning initiative

Students of the University of Ghana are resisting a decision by university management to continue the remaining seven weeks of teaching for the second semester to take place online.

University Management says that the online academic activities will be undertaken using the University’s Sakai Learning Management System.

Whilst some believe that the university should be commended for this decision, students are pushing against it.

They are complaining about the possible implications that it could have.

One of such students is the President of the Alexander Kwapong Hall Junior Common Room.

He describes the move as discriminatory.

“I’m going to my village tomorrow. I don’t have internet connectivity there. If they do not get internet connectivity to my village, I cannot do this. This is discriminatory against those of us with no internet connectivity where we’re planning to spend the quarantine time,” he told UniversNews

Another student, who gave his name as Evans, questioned how the University was going to distribute the SIM cards.

“The University says that it will be distributing SIMs but I really don’t know how they are going to do that,” Evans queried.

Meanwhile, the University explains that the decision has become necessary following President Akufo-Addo’s directive that all schools should be closed until further notice in a bid to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

In a statement signed by Pro Vice Chancellor in charge of students and academic affairs, Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, an agreement has been reached with Vodafone Ghana for students to have free access to the school’s online learning platform.

Accordingly, the University says that it will distribute Vodafone SIMs to all students to facilitate the access.

SRC to petition management over decision

The Students Representative Council, led by Isaac Agyemang says that it will, in the coming days, petition university management on the concerns raised by the students as well as to mitigate the risks involved in going on with such a decision, a decision Kwaku Asante, a former SRC Vice-Presidential candidate describes as populist.

Isaac Agyemang, in a social media post, disclosed that the SRC was not involved in the decision to move teaching and learning activities online.