The Commonwealth of Learning (COL) continues to work with local partners to strengthen teacher education through the use of Open Educational Resources (OER). The Federal College of Education (Technical), Gusau in Nigeria recently hosted a capacity-building workshop on “Understanding OER and their Uses in Initial Teacher Education”, which brought together 74 participants, including teacher educators from across Nigeria and facilitators from Botswana, Rwanda and South Africa.

In her opening remarks, the Provost, Dr Bosede O. Onazi, highlighted the importance of OER in revitalising teacher education in Nigeria. She noted that open resources will help reduce the cost of instructional materials while widening access to quality learning opportunities. A goodwill message from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, described the initiative as a bold step in reimagining teacher preparation across the continent.

The sessions, led by regional experts, explored OER concepts, benefits and challenges, strategies for locating and evaluating resources, and hands-on adaptation of materials for local contexts. Participants engaged in practical exercises on licensing, co-creation and contextualisation of teaching resources, many for the first time.

The workshop also builds on FCET Gusau’s development of its first Institutional OER Policy and Guidelines for Teacher Education, co-created with African partners under COL’s Network for Open Teacher Education in Sub-Saharan Africa (NOTES). The policy provides a framework for OER integration, including a quality assurance system and an institutional repository, positioning the College to lead open practices nationally and regionally.

COL’s Education Specialist for Teacher Education, Dr Betty Ogange, made a virtual presentation, noting that many educators still lack confidence in adapting OER or co-creating resources. She observed, “This workshop is a turning point in how we prepare, empower, and support African teachers in an increasingly open and digital world, laying the groundwork for institutions to embed openness as a lived culture in teacher education.”