AYV News, September 7, 2023
In a well-attended event during the UNESCO Digital Learning Week in Paris, Sierra Leone’s Chief Minister, Dr. David Moinina Sengeh informed policymakers, practitioners, educators, private sector partners and researchers that technology could help in accelerating Agenda 2030.
The Education 2030 agenda was adopted in 2015 to ‘ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’ by 2030.
Dr. Sengeh, who is also the Co-Chair of the SDG4-Education 2030 High-Level Steering Committee, shared a panel with Hon. Mrs. Leela Devi Dookun-Luchoomun, Vice Prime Min and Min of Education, Mauritius, Mr. Tshilidzi Marwala, Under-Sec-Gen of the UN, Mr. Leonardo Garnier, Special Adviser of the Sec-Gen on Transformation Education Summit and Ms. Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General, International Telecommunication Union to speak on the topic, Education: “digital learning in 2030 and beyond”, moderated by Ms. Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director-General for Education, UNESCO.
In his presentation, Chief Minister Sengeh stated, “It is difficult, if not impossible, to anticipate the evolution of education, particularly with digital learning in 2030 and beyond because everything changes so rapidly, and over the last three years, it is difficult to predict.”
He explained how people used to think about distance education, particularly with hybrid technology during COVID-19 and post-COVID-19 in Sierra Leone, has changed since the use of radio, mobile and distance learning in every part of the country.
“Connectivity expanded even though there were gaps, but we were able to close them,” he informed the audience.
Dr. Sengeh disclosed that there has been a held-on-belief that technology will disrupt the classroom in ways that people will not be prepared for, so there is a common fear of introducing technology, adding that “though some of these fears still remain today, however, there is no education sector plan developed in any country that does not have technology and data as a co-pillar”.
Referencing his capacities as Chief Innovation Officer and former Minster of Senior and Basic Secondary School Education in Sierra Leone, he noted that, together with partners, they developed a teacher Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool to train them on Sierra Leonean content, which is actively used by over 200 teachers daily.
He also mentioned that Sierra Leone is currently using formative AI assessment for teachers, as the country has digitised the learning content, citing that the Ministry is aware of what teachers are supposed to teach and generate assessments to give their students in real-time. Dr. Sengeh further stated that technology and digitisation can be used as essential enablers for equity and as transformational tools for learning, stressing that technology can help the world accelerate towards the Agenda 2030.
“To accelerate Agenda 2030 through technology, there is a need to ask about knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that students will need in a volatile world of insecurity, rapid climate degradation and extremism. How do we use technology to help bridge these challenges? I am very hopeful because if we think about these questions and others deeply, and conscientiously, and we place equity in the core, the world will be better for all of us learners, teachers, parents and policymakers and AI will be better for us. Education and technology are dynamic and rapidly evolving and so must we,” Dr. Sengeh concluded.
