Abstract
This study explores how
artificial intelligence (AI) can be harnessed to strengthen and optimise hybrid
learning models as a means of narrowing educational access and quality gaps in
Nigerian tertiary institutions in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Adopting a desk research design built on themes analysed from secondary source
of data, the study set out to evaluate the extent to which AI-driven tools can
expand educational access, examine their influence on instructional
effectiveness and learning quality, and analyse the institutional,
infrastructural, and ethical factors mediating their adoption in Nigerian
tertiary institutions. The review indicates that AI-augmented hybrid learning
holds considerable promise for improving student engagement, academic
performance, and equitable access when properly implemented. However, this
potential remains constrained in the Nigerian context by unreliable power and
internet infrastructure, the cost of AI-enabled tools, limited digital and AI
literacy among staff and students, data privacy concerns, and the risk of
algorithmic bias in AI-driven decision-making. The study concludes that
realising the benefits of AI-optimized hybrid learning in Nigeria will require
coordinated investment in digital infrastructure, deliberate capacity-building
for lecturers and students, clear institutional policies on data governance and
ethical AI use, and sustained public-private partnerships.
DOI: https://www.doi.10.57233/djfafais.2026.v22i01.024
author/Adams, E. J., Christian Onah, C., Tukur, N. A., and Isah, J. M.
journal/Degel 22(1) | October 2026 |
