‘Develop educational concepts to suit African setting’
Heads and governing boards of tertiary institutions have been asked to study their own educational needs and develop the exact policies and programmes that could improve the quality of education in their respective countries.
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A Senior Consultant for the Association of Governing Board of Universities and Colleges (AGB) in the United States of America (USA), Dr Joseph Burke, who made the statement, has, therefore, asked such heads to stop their attempts to introduce what he described as “foreign educational concepts” that would not work in the African setting.
According to Dr Burke, Ghana’s educational system would only record meaningful progress if it helps the country to develop its own policies and best practices that would fit its culture.
At the National Council for Tertiary Education (NTCE) Board Leadership Development Conference in Accra, he described foreign educational concepts as systems through which a developed country might introduce a specific programme or idea to address a certain problem.
The one-day conference was to sharpen the leadership and management skills and bridge skills gaps of selected senior university leaders in West Africa, especially Nigeria and Ghana.
Sponsored by the Carnegie Corporation of New York’s International Programme, the conference was dubbed “the Senior Academic Leadership Training (SALT).”
The target groups included vice chancellors, pro-vice chancellors, deans, directors and heads of departments, registrars, finance and others in leadership and management positions.
Challenges of educational system
He pointed out that “nobody can give you a specific prescribed solution to solve the challenges that affect your educational system. You must come together and do it yourselves.”
He said “that is the whole essence of the conference as it seeks to create the platform for various heads and governing boards to come and discuss the best practices for their own country”.
Touching on the role of the governing boards of tertiary education, Dr Burke said they must focus more on promoting central missions while running their institutions as effectively as possible.
According to him, the AGB strives to continuously advance the practice of governance by designing and instilling best practices and advocating nationally on issues that affect higher education.
Projects benefits
In his welcome address, the SALT Project Director, Dr Paul Effah, said the conference would equip council members with tools and skills to enable them to better understand and interpret institutional accounts and audit reports.
“It will also train councils in their broad roles and responsibilities in terms of legal, administrative and oversight,” he added.
According to Dr Effah, the conference would develop the criteria for the appointment of council members to guide government, organisations and institutions responsible for appointing, electing or nominating council members through the NTCE.
