PERVASIVENESS OF E-LEARNING AND ITS IMPACT ON THE NIGERIAN TERTIARY EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

This research investigates the spread, adoption, implementation and impact of e-learning on Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) within the Nigerian Tertiary Educational System. E-learning has changed the way we live, work and play and, in more recent times, it has completely changed the way we learn. There has been a shift in the learning paradigm from a more teacher-centered to a student-centered approach where the learner is in charge of the active construction of his/her own purposeful and meaningful learning. As such a tremendous load is placed on HEIs as they struggle to keep up with the competition in the marketplace in the midst of budget cuts by devising new, fresh and appealing methodologies that will attract, and retain students as well as motivate them along the path of becoming life-long learners. This research uses a mixed strategy; questionnaire surveys were conducted with students studying at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria (ABU); University of Benin (UNIBEN); and the Nigerian Turkish Nile University, Abuja (NTNU) and semi-structured interviews were conducted with the professors teaching at the three afore-mentioned universities. The goal of this paper is to report our findings on the impact of e-learning in improving the motivation of the learners in these three Universities which represents a successful model whose methods can be replicated across the entire Tertiary Educational Sector. This research can also serve as a key information source for high-level policy and decision makers as well as practitioners from education, business and government, which are the three key sectors driving e-learning adoption and innovation.