EDUCATION IS THE KEY -Story of a 35-year DCE

Thu, Mar 28, 2019

EDUCATION IS THE KEY
-Story of a 35-year DCE

From a poor background, Andrew Adu Boahen attended Bodwesango Junior/Senior High Schools, then to Akrokerri College of Education in the Ashanti Region and proceeded to the University of Education, Winneba.

From the college of education he combined teaching with politics, rising through the position of an assembly member of Bodwesango to a presiding member and actively involving himself in the 2008, 2012, 2016 general elections in different capacities for his constituency.

He landed himself a lucrative job in the United States of America (USA) in October 2017 but in less than 2months he had a call from his member of parliament (MP), K.T. Hammond, to return to the country to serve, in any available capacity, in the newly created Adansi Asokwa District. That was met with family and friends resistance as his sojourn abroad was a great hope for the family of the man not in politics to amass wealth but to solve problems.
But the determined patriotic young man defied the challenges and, by God's grace and dint of hardwork, became the first district chief executive (DCE) of Adansi Asokwa.

Mr. Adu Boahen's passion for education inspires him to, through thick and thin, better the educational lot of his people through timely provision of furniture, building materials, among others.

The less talking, action-oriented young politician is in the good books of the president of the republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, for protecting the public purse when he once fought for the slashing of assembly member allowance by 50% because the previous amount was needless.

Mr. Adu Boahen believes his young age better positions him to serve, for a long time, his people and wants "to be remembered as a problem solver" .

The inspirational teacher has encouraged teachers to go the extra mile in making the best out of pupils especially from deprived communities.

Mr. Adu Boahen is married with two children.

He spoke in an exclusive interview with LEARNING MATTERS' founding editor Osei Kuffour on Wednesday, March 27, 2019 in the chief executive's office in Adansi Asokwa.


Story: Osei Kuffour
Fb: Osei Kuffour OK
E: okeditor5@gmail.com

EDUCATION MINISTRY, PRIVATE SCHOOLS MEETING POSTPONED

Press Release

Due to last minute challenges with schedule the much anticipated meeting between the Education Ministry/Education Service and the various private school groups initially slated for Saturday, March 30, 2019 at Kumasi Anglican Senior High School (KASHS) has been suspended indefinitely to allow  proprietors/proprietresses involved to make time to prepare their West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (WASSCE) candidates for the forthcoming exercise.


The stakeholders engagement intended to deliberate on the New Educational Reforms Implementation, National Policy for Private Schools, among others in pre-tertiary education in Ghana.

The next schedule will be duly communicated.

Any inconvenience caused is deeply regretted.

Signed
ENOCH KWASI GYETUAH
GNACOPS ,NED
0249641349

TEACH OUR MUSIC AT BASIC LEVEL -Late Prof. Nketia's protégé

Thu, Mar 14, 2019

TEACH OUR MUSIC AT BASIC LEVEL
-Late Prof. Nketia's protégé

"Hmmm...He saw a star in me, took me from a village in 1995 and, by God's grace, fathered, mentored and exposed me to the world through my performances with the seperewa. He taught me what and how to say it on stage. He would have turned 98 in June and just as we were contemplating how to celebrate him, we've been hit by his demise. To me, it's like having lost a rising youth, " Osei Korankye breaks down.


Osei Kwame Korankye (affectionately called Osei Korankye), a foremost harp-flute (seperewa) player in Africa and a lecturer of traditional music/instruments at the University of Ghana, Legon, was under a 24-year (1995-2019) tutelage of the global music great, Emeritus Professor Kwabena Nketia, who, at 97, passed on on Wednesday, March 13, 2019 at the Legon Hospital in Accra after a short illness.

Eulogising his mentor, Osei Korankye bemoaned our crave for foreign or Western music and instruments at the expense of our rich heritage that offers us invaluable socio-economic gains that we have not taken advantage of.
And that the foreigners who come down to learn go back to make huge economic gains out of that.

Teary Osei Korankye further condemned the mocking of the few youth interested in the learning and performing indigenous music and instruments and called for the re-introduction of the teaching and learning of our music and instruments at the basic school level.

He called on the state to give the stage to our indigenous performers to encourage the promotion of our rich heritage for our generation and posterity.

On the media and tractional music event sponsors contributions to this quest, he didn't hesitate to say that there is more room for improvement.
Adding that he struggles to get his songs and events promoted by his own (the Ghanaian media) who, unfortunately, often promote other country's indigenous music.

He further called for unity among his colleague performers of the Ghanaian music and instruments because with selfishness and bickering there's no future for the field.

Osei Korankye has his mentor, the late Emeritus Professor Kwabena Nketia, eulogised in some of his compositions performed on international platforms.


Story: Osei Kuffour
Fb: Osei Kuffour OK
E: okeditor5@gmail.com

45YEARS OF GES -Waste of taxes

Thu, Mar 14, 2019

45YEARS OF GES
-Waste of taxes

In the words of a consultant to Ghana's Education Ministry, Dr. Prince Hamidu Armah,

"We know public schools are not doing well so we looked at the potential partnership between the private and public sector, and that is what has informed what we call Ghana Partnership School programme...It's anticipated that during the process, our public schools will learn from the experiences in the private sector and that is the principle behind the policy.
Under the programme, there will be effective supervision of teachers in public schools. If the head teachers are not happy with the behaviour of a teacher, they could ask the Ghana Education Service to bring to them a new teacher. So here, we are looking at how the private schools have performed by ensuring accountability. "

These statements come ahead of the policy which the ministry is due to introduce in September this year by piloting it in over 100 state-controlled basic schools in four regions viz Ashanti, Central, Greater Accra and Northern for the next three years.

The policy which the ministry indicates is not  privatisation of schools but leveraging the expertise of the private sector is expected to improve the performance of public basic schools in the country by changing the operational system to improve management of schools for better results.
And that it will not have any financial burden on parents.

This move, however, has been opposed by some teacher unions who say, contrary to the ministry's assurance, is a recipe for privatisation and eventual commercialisation of Ghana's education sector.

The latest to hit hard at the government is the Ghanaian National Council of Private Schools (GNACOPS) which is mandated to internally regulate over 22,000 private schools across the country.
GNACOPS intimates that for the nation to come this far in terms of poor standards is a reflection of the education service's failure to deliver on it's core mandate of quality education over the past 45years.
"GES must be dissolved as soon as possible and their offices and funds given to those who have succeeded in making the private sector worth  emulating by the public sector, " National Executive Director (NED) of GNACOPS, Enoch Kwasi Gyetuah, strongly stated in an interview with founding editor of Learning Matters, Osei Kuffour (Editor OK) on Wednesday, March 13, ahead of a non state actors stakeholder meeting by close of March.

GNACOPS call has been backed by several expert stakeholders in the country's educational sector.

In a related development, the owner of Joy Standard Schools, a leading name in the private sector for 27years in Ashanti, Stephen Donkor, has kicked against the publishing of the West African Examination Council (WAEC)'s results rankings.
Mr. Donkor says the practice, contrary to enhancing learning by schools, especially those who don't live up to exam expectations, trigger to the use of various ways and means by some schools and parents to buy questions for their candidates.
The development, he added, does not reveal the true abilities of candidates hence they perform abysmally when they progress to other levels where such bad practices are not countenanced.


Story: Osei Kuffour
Fb: Osei Kuffour OK
E: okeditor5@gmail.com

PRIVATE SECTOR EDUCATION -There is no policy!

Mon, Mar 11, 2019

PRIVATE SECTOR EDUCATION
-There is no policy!

Despite the invaluable contributions of the private sector to Ghana's educational development over the past 60years, the sector, boasting of 22,000 schools, has no policy to guide its operations.

National Executive Director (NED) for Ghanaian National Council of Private Schools (GNACOPS), Enoch Kwasi Gyetuah, made the statement at the council's maiden meeting with members in the Upper West Region in Wa.

Mr. Gyetuah added that private schools are not represented at the highest decision making level in education in the country and there are no grievance channels to seek redress during challenges.

He briefed members on the Education Act 788 of  2008 that was reviewed in 2015 to regulate the operations of private schools that started as Home or Castle Schools by the European merchants for their children and later extended to their local converts.
Adding that GNACOPS has a Research Team to come out with credible data to support advocacies.

He was grateful to add that through GNACOPS' relentless advocacies, the government has initiated tax reliefs that members should take advantage of by ensuring proper book keeping and financial reporting in their operations to qualify them for such.
Also, effective next academic year, 50% of the BECE registration fee will be borne by the government.

On his part, Director for Logistics and Data Management of GNACOPS, Timothy Gyebi, urged members to keep abreast of the current trends or transformations in the nation's educational policy.
Sole proprietorship, he disclosed, will soon be a thing of the past because when the proprietor/proprietress dies the school suffers gravely if it does not collapse.

He reiterated that the New Educational Reforms call for all teachers to be licensed before employment and that international educational consultant, Grant Bulmuoh, will lead a team to prepare members within 4years to write the licensure exam.
He further encouraged members to join the GNACOPS Volunteers Service Scheme (GVSS) at GH¢50 registration fee and qualify for monthly allowance while undergoing pre-licence training.
Members were reminded that national service is still mandatory.

On closure of schools, Mr. Gyebi said that only Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) and Regional Coordinating Councils (RCCs), upon recommendations by the Ghanaian Education Service (GES), have the mandate to close down schools.

GNACOPS bemoaned the misuse of funds by public sector, paving way for Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in education, a development which will eventually collapse private schools due to their inadequate decent infrastructure.

The council urged the enthused participants to be critical thinkers to fit well into the society.
And assured members it is up to the task of redeeming the sinking image of private schools in Ghana.

✍🏽: Osei Kuffour
Fb: Osei Kuffour OK
E: okeditor5@gmail.com

COME CLEAR ON LICENCE -GNACOPS to NTC

Sat, Mar 02, 2019

COME CLEAR ON LICENCE
-GNACOPS to NTC


Following the release of the maiden Teacher Licensure Examination results, the National Teaching Council (NTC), has made statements that baffle the Ghanaian National Council of Private Schools (GNACOPS) and the latter is impressing upon the former to come clear on those statements.

NTC boss, Dr. Mrs. Evelyn Oduro, said that effective September this year all teachers, public and private, without teaching licence will not be allowed to enter the classroom.
She added that existing teachers will not write the exam but will undergo professional in-service training to upgrade themselves for the licence.
And those who failed the exam will have to re-sit during the second exam in March this year.

However, national executive director (NED) of GNACOPS, Enoch Kwasi Gyetuah, in an interview with LEARNING📖MATTERS founder, Osei Kuffour (Editor OK), strongly underscored the fact that they are at sea about the fate of their over 400,000 unlicensed private school teachers across the country come September 2019.

In a related development, Mr. Gyetuah, while commending Ghanaian journalists on their educational advocacies, has, however, implored them to probe statements from government officials on educational policies to give understanding to the lay person.


✍🏽: Osei Kuffour
Fb: Osei Kuffour OK
E: okeditor5@gmail.com