Drosophila: A cost-effective teaching and practical aid in Nigerian Secondary School Biology

The training of secondary biology teachers from twenty-five (25) secondary schools across five (5) states in Nigeria was held in Department of Zoology, A.B.U. Zaria from 4th-6th July 2022. The participants were selected from a list of ninety-eight (98) applicants to reflect the three tiers of secondary schools (Federal, State and Private), across three geopolitical zones of Nigeria. The training was facilitated by sixteen (16) faculties and volunteers from within and outside Nigeria.
The workshop was divided into four components: the first included presentations by invited resource persons both physical and virtual on selected topics, and the use of Drosophila (fruit fly) in teaching and conducting practical on complex biology topics. The second component included practical on simulations, visual aids, PowerPoint construction, foldscope assembling and fly pushing. The third component involved group field work on fly hunting for classroom practical and finally micro-teaching by participants on selected complex topics with the aim of evaluating the knowledge gained from the workshop and its implementation. Post-training activities are ongoing.

“The training was impactful, as I learnt new teaching skills on how to make my classes interesting and student-centred”

“The facilitators, trainers, topics and practical met our expectations, we learnt so much within the short time. One would have spent weeks to learn, years to master and with a lot of money, but they taught us for free. We can only pay their efforts by taking back home what they’ve taught us”.

“God bless Droso4Nigeria and its sponsors, long live Droso4Nigeria”