Empty Class Teaching Phenomenon (ECTP): Mixed Reactions Trail Viral Video of Professor Lecturing Empty Class After Students Failed to Attend Lecture

By: Olufemi Orunsola 

A cacophony of reactions has trailed the emergence of a viral video in which a university professor was seen calmly lecturing an empty class.

OPEN TELEVISION NAIJA OTN News repiets as gathered that the lecturer believed to be a Professor at the Department of Human Kinetics and Health Education in Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, was filmed addressing an absent class on what was meant to be the first day of lectures for the semester.

In the viral video, the professor was seen standing in front of a row of empty seats, calmly explaining that although no students had turned up, he felt it was important to show up and register his presence.

Standing in front of an empty class, the Professor was seen saying, "Today, we have started our course program for the semester but unfortunately, the students are yet to be seen".

He continued his lecture, stating that, "But I’m happy that Dr Sunday Jonathan, who is the course student’s advisor for the department and the quality assurance director for the department as well is around and is witnessing the empty class.

He then concludes, “All the same, I feel I should be around to register my presence.”

The video, which thereafter went viral, has attracted a cacophony of reactions across major social media platforms. 

While some metizens condemned the professor's action, saying that his professor’s action was not necessary, others opined that it gives a clue on the mental health of the university lecturer.

Other netizens share the view that the incident might have resulted from a communication breakdown.

OTN News here profiles some of the reactions of Netizens on social media about the Empty Class Teaching Phenomenon.(ECTP).

Olayemi, who tweets on X.com as #Impregnabilis, wrote, “Something is not right, there has to be a miscommunication somewhere which was why nobody showed up. Even if the whole class agrees not to come, there will always be Judas Iscariot that gets to the class first and asks complex questions while the rest of the class is still trying to grasp what the lecturer is saying.

“There will always be a snitch if it is a deliberate attempt to frustrate the lecturer. The overzealous ones would have shown up at least.”

Dr OAT, identified on X as #Olaadewale2324 wrote, “I was a university lecturer. I see this as funny and unreasonable. This professor may have miscommunicated the lecture schedule to the students through their rep. Also, some Nigerian professors are just venturing into social media business. He may have just made his first debut.”

Őké-Belgium tweeting as #ChukwunyeluOrji commented, “In a sane society, this man should be more concerned at the well being of his students, if they are all ok, why no one was attending his class that day, if they are well aware the resumption date, class times etc. everything in Nigeria should not be hard and wicked.”

Herdeybukosiofentified as #Bukky0fficial1, similarly tweeted, “Teaching an empty class as if students were present suggests a serious psychological concern. Such behaviour raises red flags about the individual’s mental state. It’s s not something a mentally stable person would typically do. Unfortunately, only in a place like Nigeria would such conduct be overlooked instead of properly evaluated.”

Tolúlopé Adéníyì tweeting as #tolutronics wrote, “The university authority needs to check the psychological state of this lecturer asap.”

However, some others lauded the professor’s dedication and criticised the students for what they perceived as a lack of discipline.

Magri Sanji tweeting as #EmperorRiel on X.com wrote, “Most probably the students failed to resume. There are lecturers that resume on the first day of resumption as it should be. Some start with a test. Students will usually give themselves two extra weeks of holidays.”

OTN News recalls that the teaching of an empty class by a university lecturer is not a new phenomenon in Nigeria as a similar case happened in January 2023, a lecturer in the Department of General Studies at Federal Polytechnic Ilaro reportedly made headlines after recording himself teaching none of the expected students.

The incident was described as a dramatic moment as none of the Administration Students attended the class, and the lecturer stated in the video that the topic for the week would not be repeated.

Same month, a lecturer at the Federal University of Technology, Minna, reportedly set a timed test for absent students during a lecture on Industrial Robotics, despite the complete absence of attendees.

In the video captured on TikTok, the lecturer was seen speaking after setting the 40-minute test and directed that the test answers should be submitted quickly.

One thing that makes this latest Empty Class Teaching Phenomenon (ECTP) is the fact that it is coming at a time national attention has momentarily focuser on workings of the education sector following the mass failure of students in the 2025 UTME examinations.