PROMOTING VIRTUAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS IN NIGERIAN HIGHER INSTITUTIONS: A NEW REALITY IN THE ERA OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC

The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing sudden transformation in many areas of our economy and has greatly devastated the traditional formal learning structure in Nigeria. With the advent of COVID-19 pandemic, the traditional classroom learning process in Nigerian Higher institutions was temporarily suspended. This suspension in formal learning brought a new reality in teaching and learning. As part of preparedness to forestall reoccurrence of similar situation in the educational system, the Nigerian scholars should adopt, promote and design an additional learning environment which does not require physical classroom activities. The aim of this paper is to promote Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) in Higher Institutions of Learning as a standing alternative in the event of subsequent lockdown orders.The increasing COVID-19 variant is an indicator for sustaining or creating alternative methods of learning and teaching where necessary. As many students had to stop formal learning in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak due to insufficient or non-existing VLEs. Even though, few tertiary institutions adopted the use of VLEs in their curriculum to aid in mitigation against spread of the dreaded virus that has bedeviled the globe. The role of virtual learning environments in tertiary institutions is necessary for the continuation of learning process during pandemics. Indeed, to avert future disruption of formal learning across the country, VLEs can enable the continuation of academic activities through digital devices.