Utilisation of Remote Teaching Platforms by Science Lecturers in Some Selected Federal Universities in South-West, Nigeria

Abstract

Remote teaching platforms have emerged as an essential tool for allowing effective teaching and learning in the face of changing conditions and rising demand for online education. The study investigated remote teaching platforms utilization by science lecturers in some selected federal universities in South- West, Nigeria. The study adopted an ex- post- facto research design..  Total enumeration technique was adopted to involve all the science lecturers. Structured questionnaire was used for collecting data for the study. Out of a total of four hundred and sixty seven (467) questionnaires administered, three hundred and thirty six (336) were returned. However, only three hundred and sixteen (316) were found useful for the study. The study revealed that science lecturers mainly use Skype 272 (86.1%), Chat rooms 229 (72.5%), and Zoom 253 (80.1%) as remote teaching platforms.  The result of frequency also revealed that zoom 266 (84.2%) was used always. Poor internet connectivity (x̅ =3.65), epileptic power supply (x̅ = 3.78), inadequate/slow bandwidth (x̅ = 3.64), were the main challenges encountered by the science lecturers while using the remote platforms. The study concluded that science lecturers may not be able to fully explore and adopt remote teaching platforms for their lectures due to the various challenges identified.  The study thus recommended regular power supply, internet access, training and increased exposure to remote teaching platforms.