General News of Tuesday, 16 May 2017

Source: ultimatefmonline.com

Ghana will not strive if Teachers are taken for granted - Osafo-Maafo

Yaw Osafo-Maafo Yaw Osafo-Maafo

The Senior Minister Yaw Osafo-Maafo has started that Ghana will not strive if teachers are taken for granted.

This he said government is committed to improving the country’s educational system most especially teacher education.

He said this is important since Ghana’s development lies in the hands of teachers.

The Senior Minister made this known during the 10th Congregation of Our Lady of Apostles (OLA) College of Education, Cape Coast.

Hon. Osafo Maafo indicated that the most important responsibility of a teacher is to be a role model and urged the graduates to serve as good role models in society in order to uplift the image of the teaching profession.

He added that the attribute of teachers as role models has been abused in all dimensions to a great extent.

On his part, the guest speaker Prof. Kwesi Yankah, Minister of State in–charge of Tertiary Education also indicated that there cannot be any meaningful transformation of Ghana’s educational system if the quality of teacher education at the basic level is not improved.

He added that teachers have a unique role to play in nation-building saying government is currently embarking on various projects to ensure that teachers are well positioned to deliver efficiently in order to enhance the quality of teacher education.

He also promised that government has taken a bold step to restore teacher-trainees monthly allowances.

Prof. Yankah emphasised that the allowance is not a bait to lure individuals into the teaching profession but rather meant to encourage those who genuinely desire to become teachers but cannot afford the high cost of funding their professional education.

He further promised that he will make sure that most of the challenges faced by the school become a thing of the past.