COREN commences 4-day train-the-trainer workshop for varsities on  engineering education

AKOR SYLVESTER-Abuja

The Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria (COREN) has commenced a 4-day Train-the-Trainers Workshop on its Outcome Based Engineering Education (OBEE) programme for delegates from the Faculty of Engineering of Nigerian Universities in the North-Central zone of the country.

Speaking at the opening ceremony in Abuja, the COREN President, Engr Ali Rabiu, said the realities of modern days has made it most imperative for COREN, after about 50 years of existence, to change the face of engineering education in the country.

The COREN boss said that COREN, in a bid to live up to its mandate of regulating engineering practice in Nigeria in all aspects and ramifications to bring it up to speed with international best practices, was expanding engineering programmes in Nigerian Universities to strengthen its accreditation system even as it is midwifing a process that would lead to local and international recognition of engineering qualifications from higher educational institutions in Nigeria as such would improve the quality, proficiency and mobility of COREN registered engineers, hence the OBE initiative.

He stated that the council is in the process of becoming a provisional signatory of the Washington Accord (WA), after  which graduates of engineering programmes accredited by COREN are going to be having privileges of employment in the signatory countries as engineers without further examinations, listing the signatory countries of WA to include: Australia, Canada, Republic of Ireland, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, UK, USA, Malaysia, India, Germany, Russia and Sri Lanka.

The COREN boss maintained that the next stage in implementing the Council resolution as regards the OBE “is to assemble critical mass of knowledgeable and experienced persons in OBE as well as mentees of OBE learning environment who are to pioneer and champion the capacity development of the various strata of Engineering Professionals involved in training, practicing and regulating in Nigeria (now referred to as University based OBE implementors),” and that was the rationale behind orgainsing the workshop.

“The next question we need to ask ourselves is why OBE Regional Train-the-Trainers Workshop for Nigerian Universities?

“The goal of this workshop is to prepare participants to acquire the knowledge and skill of OBE and be able to train others on the principles and implementations of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) in Nigeria Universities,” he said.

He stated that “this one for Universities in North-Central Nigeria is the fourth in the series organised so far, the one for North-West at Ahmadu Bello University, (ABU), Zaria (20th – 24th September, 2021); South- South Zone at University of Benin, Edo State. (11th – 15th October, 2021); South -East Zone at University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus (UNEC) (16th – 20th November, 2021)”.

The participants for the Abuja workshop, from each university; include, the Director, Academic Planning Unit, Dean/Deputy Dean (Engineering Faculty/School), Faculty Examination Officer, Head of Department, Departmental Exam Officer and others.

Also peaking to newsmen at the end of the programme, the COREN Register/CEO, Engr Prof Joseph Odigure, said the builty of what COREN is trying to do is that all stakeholders from top to bottom of the engineering profession in Nigeria, including the small-scale artisans, were being carried along in the impartation of knowledge under the OBE programme, a norm he said was neglected over the years to the detriment of standard engineering practice in the country.

Making a vote of thanks on behalf of other participants, the Dean, College of Engineering, Joseph Tarka University, Makurdi, Prof. J. A. Enokela, thanked COREN  and all those involved in making the workshop a reality, adding that the training is one of the best things that would happen in the quest to revolutionalise engineering profession in Nigeria.

On his part,, another participant from the Joseph Tarka University, Makurdi, with the Academic Planning Directorate of the same university, Amos Adoge, said , “The impact of OBE education is going to be of very significant magnitude, not just to the universities alone, but all stakeholders in engineering, including the industries and every other place where an engineer is to work or contribute his quota.

“So this is entirely a deviation from the traditional ways in which we used to do things to bring about result-oriented graduates that will be coming out of our University”.