A Professor of Science and Computer Education and former Executive Secretary, National University Commission (NUC), Peter Okebukola, has been selected to receive the NARST 2022 Fellows Award.
Established in 1928, NARST is a global organization for improving science education through research and Okebukola would be the first African to be accorded such honour.
The honour recognizes Prof. Okebukola’s professional accomplishments as the most significant among other researchers nominated for the Fellows Award this year.
A statement issued by the NARST, Fellows Award Chair, Jomo Mutegi, and Board Liaison, NARST Award Committee, Noemi Waight read in part: “Prof Peter Okebukola’s research occurs at the intersection of five central themes: (a) computers in education and e-learning, (b) co-operative learning, (c) metacognitive strategies in science education, (d) environmental education, and (e) eco-cultural influences in the learning of science concepts.
“Prof. Okebukola’s work has made an exceptional impact in science education through his research, leadership roles in Africa and UNESCO and UNICEF, and enactment of impactful programs for girls and visually impaired students in Africa and beyond. Specific features of his work include (a) the depth and breadth of the Junior Engineers, Technicians and Scientists (JETS) program on girls’ participation in science careers in Nigeria; (b) the impact of his work with visually impaired students; (c) the various ways that his work supports and extends scholarship related to indigenous science and technology; and (d) the outreach efforts that popularize science throughout Africa. Okebukola’s work makes a difference in the lives of the most underserved students, teachers, and communities at local, national and international levels.
“The NARST Fellows Award was established in 2021 to honor and recognize the work of a NARST member that has made an exceptional impact in science education. The emphasis is on translational scholarship, wherein scholars extend the boundaries of traditional research and service in order to impact formal and informal science education. Through this award program, we celebrate work that makes a difference in the lives of children, teachers, and communities at local, national and international levels”
