The 水果派 of Nigeria (NOUN) has taken a step to address the shortage of trained student counsellors by launching a Massive Open聽On-line聽Course (MOOC) on student聽counselling, recognizing the pressing need for adequate counselling services within the university.
The university has developed the聽MOOC-like short course to equip faculty and staff with the necessary skills and knowledge to聽effectively聽support students聽facing various challenges.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof.聽Olufemi Peters,聽who聽delivered a compelling聽opening聽speech at the聽training, underscored the critical role of student counselling聽in nurturing a conducive learning environment.
He emphasised the importance of mental health and well-being in academic success, stating聽that聽“Adequate support and guidance are essential for our students to thrive academically and personally.”
Acknowledging the challenges faced by the university due to the shortage of trained counsellors, he聽outlined the university’s commitment to addressing this issue. “We recognise the need for more trained professionals in student聽counselling, and we are dedicated to enhancing our support services for students.”
Peters聽praised the Dean of the Faculty of Education, Prof.聽Bamikole Ogunleye and his staff for their work in creating the student聽counselling聽short-course, and聽expressed gratitude for their dedication and foresight in addressing the need for trained counsellors within the university.
“The Faculty of Education has demonstrated exceptional leadership in recognising and responding to the shortage of student counsellors in NOUN. Their commitment to developing this short-course reflects our university’s ethos of innovation and excellence in education,”聽the VC said.
The student聽counselling聽short course, designed in collaboration with the Directorates of Learning Content Management System (DLCMS) and Learner’s Support Services (DLSS) along with experts in psychology and education, covers a range of topics, including聽counselling聽techniques, crisis intervention and psychological assessment.
Peters encouraged participants to actively engage in the course and apply the knowledge gained to foster a supportive and inclusive learning environment at NOUN.
In his welcome address, the Dean,聽Faculty of Education, Prof. Bamikole Ogunleye, shed light on the issue of the shortage of student counsellors within the university, highlighting its impact on students and the relevance of聽counselling聽in the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) system.
With only about 40 student counsellors spread across over 110 study聽centres聽nationwide, he emphasised the challenges faced by students in accessing counselling services and the negative effects of this shortage on students’ academic performance and overall well-being.
“The lack of adequate聽counselling聽support impedes on the students’ ability to cope with academic stress, personal challenges, and other issues they may encounter during their academic journey,” he stated.
Ogunleye聽also highlighted the unique importance of聽counselling聽within the context of NOUN’s ODL system. “In the absence of traditional face-to-face interactions, student counselling plays an important role in providing personalised support and guidance to our diverse student body.”
On her part,聽the programme coordinator,聽Prof.聽Dorothy Ofoha, informed the participants on what they were expected to achieve at the end of the training, which included demonstrating the use of communication skills in counselling, conduct of counselling with the awareness of ethical issues, utilisation of聽appropriate counselling techniques in responding to issues raised by learners,聽among many others.
The Director, Directorate of Learning Content Management System (DLCMS), Dr.聽Lukman Bello,聽provided a brief demonstration to the participants on how to navigate the聽short-course platform and advised them to take their time to familiarise themselves with the activities and layout of the platform for optimal results.