The 2014 National Best Teacher, Yahaya Mumuni, is appealing to the government to re-deploy all non-professional teachers whose appointments have been terminated.
He pointed out that the education sector lacks adequate teachers to teach the increasing number of students therefore, the decision to sack all pupil teachers is unwise.
“We still have loopholes in the Ghana Education Service; we still need a lot of teachers so how then do we turn around to say that non-professional teachers should go home and rest?” he asked.
[contextly_sidebar id=”fHJnojclrV0T56jYGFdRTt9NWWtwK3Ia”]In September this year, the Ghana Education Service (GES) announced the termination of the appointment of all pupil teachers across the country due to the failure of the affected teachers to upgrade themselves.
But addressing the gathering after receiving his award, the 36-year-old Mumuni who is a teacher at the Kanton Senior High School at Tumu in the Upper West Region urged government to re-deploy the sacked pupil teachers.
He asked, “Is it really possible to deploy teachers from Greater Accra and Ashanti Region to my village like Walembele? Try as government may, it cannot do all that.”
The decision forms part of the GES’ resolve to halt the falling standards of education in Ghana which has become a major concern for many.
Results being churned out by students in both the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and the West Africa Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) have been poor in recent years.
A recent GES survey revealed that 98% of class 2 pupils could read and understand the English language.
The Education Ministry and other stakeholders in the sector have given the assurance they are working to resolve all challenges.
One of the measures is to ensure only qualified and professional teachers are employed to teach.
According to Yahya Mumuni, it is impossible to transfer teachers from urban centers to teach in remote villages; adding that, it is therefore imperative to allow the pupil teachers to help in such areas.
Mr. Mumuni said it is uninspiring to hear from the GES that some teachers will be withdrawn or fired.
He was crowned the 2014 National Best Teacher at an awards ceremony which was held at Cape Coast in the Central Region.
It was attended by the Vice President Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, Education Minister, Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang and her two deputies.
The event which coincided with the World Teachers Day Celebrations was also used to award about 4,000 teachers across the country.
By: Efua Idan Osam/citifmonline.com/Ghana
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