Three UI postgraduate students create online English Language teaching, learning platform

Three postgraduate students of the University of Ibadan have created an online forum for the teaching and learning of English Language, saying it has greatly helped to keep scholars, teachers and students, busy during the lockdown period occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Called the ‘English Language Hub’, the platform, currently operating on WhatsApp with plans to concluded to get on Telegram, has participants from all walks of life including the academia.

According to the initiator, Ikeoluwapo Baruwa, the virtual community was created to bring experts in English Language and learners together for the purpose of knowledge exchange.

“The coalescence of ivory tower and outside world would adequately aid and sharpen the thoughts of teachers, especially in the classroom setting and in their articulation of words and tenses in various write-ups” he said.

He disclosed that although the platform was founded in January, it only gained momentum recently, keeping members busy during the lockdown period where many are confined at home by the COVID-19 crisis.

He explained further that he and his partners, Oluwadamilare Jegede and Oluwatosin Aluko chose to call the platform a “hub” because “it is a central and important learning space” where deep insights about the English Language are shared.

Baruwa, a young researcher and aspiring PhD candidate with interest in Language, Ethics and Adult Education, has authored and co-authored papers with senior colleagues in and outside his field. He is the platform organizer while Jegede and Aluko perform the role of administrators on the platform.

Jegede is an E-learning Developer who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Special Education and a Master’s degree in Educational Technology while Aluko, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Philosophy, a post graduate diploma in Education and a Master’s degree in Philosophy of Education from the University of Ibadan, has interests in Identity Education.