Teacher Professional Development Expert and Assessment Consultant, Professor Jonathan Fletcher has bemoaned the low standard and the orientation of Ghana’s teacher education institutions and the training of teachers.

His concern comes on the back of the failure of Over 6000 teachers out of 7,728 who sat for the teacher licensure exams last month as was disclosed by the Registrar of the Ghana Teacher Licensure Examination (GTLE), Dr. Christian Addai-Poku.

The Teacher Professional Development expert made his point on 3FM Sunrise Morning on Thursday 22 May, 2023 that we need to make sure that the right people get into the teacher training institutions. Then again, the more you get people in, and you don’t match it with the right resources, that is what you are going to get.

“How are you going to have one hundred people in a class? Elsewhere the teachers are not even trained in institutions like that; teachers are going to teach in schools and that is where they are trained. In the schools, they have training classes, and they work with real teachers. If it is a university program, they only go to the university maybe once or twice a week” Prof Fletcher stated.

He explained that having a large class size undermines effective teaching and learning since a teacher is handling more students, it makes it difficult to effectively assess and supervise the trainees.

“In the first place we have challenges when it comes to the training of teachers therefore, I wouldn’t say anybody who has come out of a teacher training programme is hundred percent prepared for the work. People have to learn on the job and the first thing is to make sure that people who are actually going to do the job have the commitment and secondly are prepared” he said.

According to the consultant, the system makes it difficult to assess the many teachers so there is the need to find a way to ensure that before they go out and teach, they are well prepared hence there is nothing wrong with the licensure exams because it will help all.

“If you have one teacher training a hundred trainees, how many of them can the teacher know and have a one-to-one session with? That is impossible, whereas elsewhere every student will have a one-to-one with a teacher. It is like producing people on a conveyor belt,” he bemoaned.

The Ministry of Finance has confirmed that the first tranche of $600million of the $ 3 billion Extended Credit Facility (ECF) has been received by the Bank of Ghana (BoG).

The cash, according to the Ministry, is to help restore macroeconomic stability, sustain the country’s debts and lay a strong foundation for inclusive growth.

“The first tranche of $600million of Ghana’s low interest of $3billion Extended Credit Facility has been received to help restore macroeconomic stability, sustain the country’s debts and lay a strong foundation for inclusive growth,” the Ministry tweeted on Saturday, May 20.

The first tranche of $600million of Ghana's low interest of $3billion Extended Credit Facility has been received to help restore macroeconomic stability, sustain the country’s debts and lay a strong foundation for inclusive growth.

— Ministry of Finance, Ghana (@MoF_Ghana) May 20, 2023

Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta earlier stated that the second tranche was expected to be received in the next 6 months.

Speaking at the IMF-Ghana joint press conference held in Washington   on Thursday, May 18, he said “There is a 600million Dollars release, I am sure we can get it by tomorrow, and in the next 6 months it is going to be another 600million dollars and then we have about five different tranches in the periods forward to get to the $3billion.”

The IMF Mission Chief for Ghana Stéphane Roudet indicated that the $3 billion bailout would result in reforms in the energy and cocoa sectors.

Also, he said the programme would result in reforms to encourage private sector investments and also build international reserves.

“There will be reforms in the energy and cocoa sectors,” he said during a joint Ghana -IMF press conference.

“It will be restoring macroeconomic stability, for higher and more inclusive growth. It has reforms that will make the economy more resilient and likely to withstand shock in the future,” he added.

The Board of the Fund unanimously approved Ghana’s bailout on Wednesday, May 17 at a meeting in Washington after Ghana secured the Paris Club financing assurance on Friday, May 12.

Hundreds of squatters at a slum area in Tema Newtown waterland, a suburb of Tema, have been rendered homeless following a démolition exercise carried out by a developer on the land they were occupying.

The victims mostly Nigerien traders who have been living in the area for the past 15 years say their former landowner who has since sold out the land to a new buyer, has refused to compensate them despite monies being allocated by the new owner for such purpose.

The over a hundred Nigerien traders who have been living in Waterland, a slum suburb of Tema Newtown, returned home last weekend to meet their place of abode demolished by a developer who is reported to have purchased the land hosting them from their landlord. According to the displaced squatters, even though their former landlord did hint to them at his intention to sell off the land and the need for them to pack out from the place, the sudden démolition of their structures without any prior notice was inhumane.

They claim they have been forced to live under the scorching sun with their families since their landlord failed to compensate them as per an agreement between the former and the new landowner.
Mohammed Illias, an opinion leader in the community who is championing the course for the displaced squatters to be compensated, urged the former landlord whom he claimed had been given money to compensate the squatters to do the needful or else risk cutting the anger of the community members.
Meanwhile, checks indicate that the National Disaster Management Organization have begun arrangements to support the displaced squatters who are currently sleeping in the open at waterland.