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Madam Philippa Larsen, acting National President of GNAT
Madam Philippa Larsen, acting National President of GNAT

GNAT and Canadian Teachers organise in-service training

The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) in collaboration with the Canadian Teachers Federation (CTF) is organizing an in-service training workshop for about 1, 360 selected teachers in the Western Region, designed to update their knowledge and skills to be relevant to the child.

The one week programme, which is under the "GNAT/CTF 'Nkabom' Project Overseas in-Service Training Workshop," has been running for the past 55 years for teachers in three regions every year on rotational basis.

Last year, the programme was held for 1, 350 teachers in Ashanti, Eastern and Volta Regions

Under the Nkabom project, some topics have been designed for teachers serving in deprived and under-served areas, to improve their teaching skills, creativity and enhance greater community participation in the development of education in their respective communities.

Furthermore, an aspect of the programme, known as "The Beginning Teachers Mentorship," is to help newly posted teachers who have not served more than three years in the system to find their feet in the realities of the teaching profession in Ghana and also equip both old and new teachers the skills to mentor others.

Courses

Courses to be held include basic administration, primary mathematics and science, special female mathematics and science, Junior High School (JHS) Mathematics, English, Science, French, social studies and JHS basic design and technology.

Others are SHS English, Mathematics and Integrated Science, General Paper for all in gender issues, Nkabom whole school readiness for numeracy and literacy as well as Nkabom beginning teachers mentorship.

The visiting eight Canadian tutors will be facilitating in the two Nkabom courses of eight classes, made up of 160 participants and also the general course on gender issues.

Purpose

Giving the purpose of the meeting at the opening ceremony at the Holy Child College of Education in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis on Monday, the Course Director, Ms Gifty Apanbil explained that GNAT as a professional organization, believed in continuous education and professional development of its members because "We are in an industry which requires constant updating of one's knowledge to become useful."

Ms Apanbil, who is also the Deputy General Secretary of Education and Professional Development indicated that it was that belief which made the GNAT to establish a whole division, headed by a deputy general secretary to be in charge of education and professional development of its members.

She again noted that as a major stakeholder in education in Ghana, GNAT believed in the right of every Ghanaian child to free quality basic education as enshrined in the 1992 Constitution and in the Social Development Goals (SDGs).

Next generation

The course director pointed out that the future of the next generation was in the hands of the present crop of teachers, which meant that the future of Ghana was in the hands of teachers.

"We cannot afford to fail the Ghanaian society, which have entrusted the future of the country into our hands. All teachers should strive to give nothing short of quality education to the Ghanaian child," Ms Apanbil advised.

Qualified/skilled teachers

The acting National President of GNAT, Madam Philipa Larsen, who performed the opening ceremony, also explained that when the GNAT talked of quality education in the country, it had quality, qualified and skilled teachers in mind, as drivers in the centre.

She said what, therefore, went into the training of quality teachers and maintaining them in the classroom, should be of primary concern to members, the government and all other stakeholders in the education enterprise.

"In our quest to raise education standards in the country, we must make sure we invest a lot into the basic training and subsequent in-service training of teachers around whom education revolves. Highly trained teachers should be able to use content, pedagogical and curriculum knowledge to stimulate deliveries and help pupils

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