Mr. Oyewale Oyelola, a Lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication at the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti, has praised the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) and the National Universities Commission (NUC) for updating Nigeria’s Mass Communication curriculum to align with current technological realities.
In a statement over the weekend, Oyelola welcomed the new curriculum, noting that it comes just two years after he publicly called for such a review.
Back in July 2023, while participating in the African Young Media Professionals Fellowship at the Centre for Management Development (CMD), Lagos, Oyelola had observed that the previous curriculum failed to capture the rapid technological changes reshaping journalism worldwide.
“It’s exciting to see the introduction of new courses and the revision of existing ones to reflect today’s realities in the journalism profession,” he said.
“Two years ago, I specifically advocated for a curriculum update that would integrate advancements such as artificial intelligence, computer-based news verification, fact-checking tools, and modern content distribution strategies.”
According to him, the new curriculum now includes courses like Digital Communication, Fact-Checking, Environmental Reporting, and Health Communication, while traditional subjects such as News Reporting and Media Writing have been refreshed to incorporate the latest industry practices.
Oyelola, who also serves as Vice President of the Nigerian Guild of Investigative Journalists (NGIJ), expressed confidence that the reforms will close the gap between classroom learning and the fast-evolving realities of the media industry.
