Mr Daniel Syme, the Upper East Deputy Regional Minister, has called for innovative ways of teaching, with stringent enforcement of performance agreements, to ensure that stakeholders work to improve the falling standards of education.

Mr Syme also called for the implementation of strict school bye laws to commit parents, teachers and pupils to dedicate themselves to their roles and adhere to all regulations.

The Deputy Regional Minister made the call at the opening session of a three-day annual regional education sector review forum in Bolgatanga on Wednesday.

The forum, with the theme, “Enhancing quality basic education in public basic schools through effective stakeholder participation”, sought to review the performance of the educational sector in the Region and find solutions to challenges.

Mr Syme noted that teacher absenteeism, high level indiscipline among pupils, refusal of teacher postings and high number of pupil teacher trainees in the basic schools contributed to the many problems affecting performance of basic schools.

He lamented the Region’s performance at the basic level over the years and called on school oversight committees, teachers and Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) to be morecommitted to their responsibilities and help in the monitoring and evaluation of schools performance.

He reiterated that matters of education were dear to the region and therefore could not be compromised, and urged the Regional Directorate of Education to reconsider constituting education oversight committees and PTAs.

Mr Syme also expressed dissatisfaction about the absence of the Talensi, Bulsa North and South, Garu and Pusiga District Directors of Education from the function and urged the Regional Education Directorate to officially put in letters concerning such behavior for the various districts to be brought to book.

Mr Emmanuel Sombo Zumakpeh, Regional Director of Education, in his welcome address hoped stakeholders would discuss issues dispassionately, bearing in mind that since education was a social enterprise, solutions would be found by participants to address the challenges identified and not to apportion blame.

Ms Clara Dube, Chief Field Officer of UNICEF, in a solidarity message reiterated that collaboration was important in contributing towards development of education and therefore more was desired to improve education.

Ms Dube who outlined her outfit’s collaborative efforts in the region indicated that UNICEF in the year under review coordinated and carried out regional initiatives in collaboration with the regional education directorate to strengthen the capacity of district education offices in analyzing and planning for quality education.

Among the initiatives, she said, 1000 teachers were trained in teaching methodologies in some districts in the region whilst 20,000 school children were screened for identification and confirmation of health defects, and were also helped in the treatment of the defects identified.