Professor Raymond Bako of the Department of Educational Foundations and Curriculum, Ahmadu Bello University, was recently announced as the pioneer leader of the African Centre of Excellence on New Pedagogies in Engineering Education (ACENPEE), Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.
He graduated from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria in 1982 with a B.A. (Ed.) History degree. He also holds a Masters (M.Ed.) degree in Philosophy of Education (1988) and Doctorate (Ph.D) degree in Philosophy of Education (2007) from the University of Jos, Jos. Professor Bako joined the services of Ahmadu Bello University in 1990 as an Assistant Lecturer and rose to the rank of Professor in 2013.
Professor Raymond B. Bako is a Fulbright Scholar having been to the University of Maryland, College Park, USA in 1998, for the Fulbright programme. He has been an active member of the Fulbright Alumni Association of Nigeria (FAAN) becoming the National President of the Association from 2010-2014. He is also a United States Government sponsored International Visitors Leadership Program (IVLP) participant on “Alumni Leadership Development” in 2010. The programme took him to four major US cities – Washington DC, San Francisco, Pensacola and Chicago. Prof. Bako was the Coordinator of the Education and Development Research Network of the Institute for Development Research (IDR), Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. He has received research grants including the World Bank STEP-B project grant, US State Department and the US Embassy in Nigeria grants.
Professor Bako’s interest in Engineering Education started in 2007 with Professor Bernard Van Wie from Washington State University (WSU), Pullman, USA (Fulbright scholar at Ahmadu Bello University). Professor Van Wie and the team eventually won the World Bank STEP-B grant in 2008 to deepen their work on the Cooperative, Hands-on, Active, Problem-solving Learning (CHAPL) pedagogy using a Desktop Learning Module (DLM).
Professor Bako and his team have received training and certification on Engineering Education from Washington State University (WSU), Pullman, USA, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, USA. In addition, Professor Bako has attended international conferences and delivered papers on Engineering Education. He has been published by the International Journal of Engineering Education (IJEE), USA. Professor Bako is a member of the African Engineering Education Association (AEEA), and with collaboration with the International Federation of Engineering Societies (IFEES).
Prof. Bako has also been involved in community development work for over 10 years working as a Senior Researcher with the Theatre for Development Centre (TFDC) in the implementation of projects such as Leadership Development for Political Leaders in Reproductive Health and Family Planning (LDP/RH/FP), Transforming Education for Girls in Nigeria (TEGIN), Gender Disparity in Education in Northern Nigeria (British Council), evaluation of Mobilizing for Development (M4D) project (DFID/ITAD, UK) and Child Development Grant Programme (CDGP). Similarly, he was involved in the World Bank/SDD project on Women’s Initiative for Socio-Economic Engagement (WISE). He has also executed US Embassy projects such as the Gombe Mai Ruwa and the Samaru Car Wash projects.
In addition, Prof. Bako has an in-depth knowledge of conflict resolution mechanisms having worked with the Abraham Research Group, Florida International University, Florida to organize an Interfaith Conflict Resolution workshop. His leadership and organizational skills coupled with the ability to teamwork has helped in the successful implementation of the various projects he has been engaged in. His project experience also includes the ability to carry out an in-depth review of literature, a good understanding of various research methodologies, qualitative and quantitative analysis of data and project report writing. His research interests are in higher education studies, policy studies and analysis, curriculum design and innovation and inclusiveness in education. Prof. Bako is well published in national and international journals and has attended conferences in the United States of America (USA), South Africa and China. He is also an honorary citizen of the city of Pensacola, Florida, USA.
There is no doubt that the outstanding credentials of Prof. Bako and his dogged belief in excellent performance places ACENPEE on a sound footing for all-round successes in coming years.