Governing councils of seven colleges of education inaugurated
The Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) has approved the migration of staff of the colleges of education (COEs) from the Ghana Education Service (GES) payroll onto the colleges of education payroll.
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This was made known by the Minister of Education, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, at the inauguration of the governing councils of seven colleges of education at a brief ceremony at the Education Village in Accra yesterday.
She reminded the staff that, “Not all existing staff of the COE meet the minimum requirements of the scheme of service developed by the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE).”
“Therefore, not all the staff of the colleges are being migrated onto the Single Spine Grade Structure for COE,” she said.
Colleges of Education
The colleges are the Kibi Presbyterian College of Education, Abetifi College of Education the Jasikan College of Education and the Akatsi College of Education.
The rest are the Wiawso College of Education, Enchi College of Education and the Presbyterian Women College of Education, Aburi.
The seven make up the rest of the COEs that did not have governing councils. Earlier in 2015, the ministry had inaugurated the governing councils of 31 COEs.
The Chairman of the governing council of the Peki College of Education was also sworn in because the council of that college was among those sworn in last year without a chairman.
Governing councils
The governing councils, which are expected to comply with the functions stated in the Colleges of Education Act, 2012 (Act 847), have the mandate to ensure that the COEs train students to acquire the necessary professional and academic competences for teaching in pre-tertiary institutions and non-formal education institutions.
They are also to build the professional and academic capacities of serving teachers through regular continuing education.
Unqualified staff
Professor Opoku-Agyemang stated that staff of COEs who did not meet the requirements had been identified and data on them would be released to the GES for placement.
“We also wish to suggest that all avail themselves of the report from the FWSC on this matter for our own information.”
“However, some job titles have changed and in some instances, job holders have been placed on lower grade levels with corresponding lower salaries,” she revealed.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang gave an assurance that those so affected would receive conversion difference in line with the principles of the Single Spine Pay Policy (SSPP), in order not to make them worse off than they were before the placement.
Replacement of allowance
She announced that government policy to replace allowances paid to teacher trainees with the students’ loan was yielding results and “we can all testify to the expediency of the policy”.
Professor Opoku-Agyemang said it was imperative to raise the number of trained teachers for a growing population, reduce the number of pupil teachers and enhance the image of teaching as a preferred profession.
Response
Responding, the Chairman of the Governing Council of the Wiawso College of Education, Bishop Abraham Kobina Ackah, who spoke on behalf of the councils, pledged that members of the councils would discharge their duties meticulously, “with God being our helper”.