GES Denies Report On Cert 'A'Tteachers

The Ghana Education Service (GES) has denied that about 15,000 Certificate "A" teachers leave the classroom every year to pursue further studies. "If 15,000 teachers leave the classroom ever year, we would by now be having empty classrooms all over the country," the acting Head of the Public Relations unit of the GES, Mr Paul Krampa, said in an interview with the Daily Graphic. He was reacting to comments by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), Professor Akwasi Asabere-Ameyaw, that 15,000 teachers left the classroom every year to pursue further studies. Professor Asabere-Ameyaw was addressing the matriculation of the sixth batch of students for the Diploma in Basic Education by Distance Learning at the College of Technology Education (Kumasi Campus). Mr Krampa noted that every year the GES, under its study leave policy, sponsored 3,000 teachers to various tertiary institutions to pursue courses relevant to the developmental needs of the service and the country at large. He explained further that 9,000 teacher trainees from the 38 teacher training colleges also passed out every year and were posted to places or schools where they were needed most. "Every year only 3,000 teachers leave the classroom to pursue further studies," he emphasised, and indicated that to supplement the training of teachers while they were in the classrooms, programmes were being organised by the GES, the University of Cape Coast and the UEW to upgrade teachers' professional competence. Mr Krampa noted that such programmes were being organised in a manner that did not affect the academic calendar, as "they are organised when schools are on vacation". "All these are being done to ensure that teachers are always available in the classroom as they upgrade themselves," he said. According to him, the government was committed to improving and upgrading teachers, saying that in December last year the government released GH¢1.5 million as its initial support to 30,000 serving. Certificate 'A' teachers in public schools pursuing diploma education, through distance education and sandwich programmes. Mr Krampa said such upgrading programmes were designed to ensure that they impacted positively on the quality of teaching and helped to improve pupils’ achievement in schools through effective teaching and learning. With such a move, he said, the problem of vacant classrooms as a result of teachers going on study leave would be curtailed, since teachers on these distance education/sandwich programmes, will remain in the classrooms to teach and only go for face-to-face sessions during holidays. Under the support scheme, he said each beneficiary teacher would be given financial support every year with effect from September 2007.