Thirteen Public Colleges of Education has received the Challenge Fund Grants Award to implement innovative concepts that would improve the practical skills of Teacher trainees.
It would also promote the professional development of tutors of these colleges.
The Transforming Teacher Education and Learning (T-TEL) Ghana, a Government Programme funded by UKAid, disbursed GH₵ 1,286,752.30 to 13 projects funded under the Challenge Fund of T-TEL.
The UKAid has committed 17 pounds sterling (90 million cedis) for the four-year programme starting from 2015 to 2018 to help deliver the transformation of teacher education in Ghana. The Fund is being managed by Cambridge Education.
T-TEL Ghana is a four-year programme, designed to support the implementation of the Pre-tertiary Teacher Professional Development and management policy framework developed by the Ministry of Education.
It seeks to transform the delivery of pre-service teacher education in Ghana by providing the quality of teaching and learning through support to relevant national bodies and institutions and all public Colleges of Education (CoEs).
The recipient colleges are Atebubu College of Education; Accra College of Education; St John Bosco’s College of Education, Navrongo; OLA College of Education; Dambai College of Education, Jasikan; Presbyterian Women’s College of Education, Aburi, and Jasikan College of Education.
The rests are Peki St Francis College of Education; Amedzofe E.P. College of Education; Ada College of Education and Mt Mary College of Education; Kibi Presbyterian College of Education, Abetifi Presbyterian College of Education and Komenda College of Education.
Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwah, Deputy Minister in charge of Tertiary Education, said the programme is to improve high quality of education at the basic levels and commended T-TEL, UKAid and stakeholders for their continuous support and commitments towards transforming the country’s educational sector.
He said since they passed the Colleges of Education Act, Act 847, the Colleges did not have the necessary support and funding needed to transform the sector, adding: “There is one thing passing the law and getting the adequate funding to implement it.”
He said it was against this background that government continue to put in myriad of interventions which are all linked together to avoid duplication and mismanagement.
These interventions, he said, are all yielding the right results and expressed Government’s appreciation to all donors for their continuous support in that direction.
“Ghana has achieved gender parity at the basic level and the challenge now is how to retain achievement at the senior high school and tertiary levels,” he said.
He, therefore, congratulated the 13 Colleges for their hard work and determination that had won them the award and urged the remaining to put in maximum efforts to also access the fund to enable them implement their projects.
Mr Akwasi Addae-Boahene, the National Programme Manager, T-TEL Ghana, urged the colleges to work hard to achieve the anticipated outcomes of their projects.
“We expect colleges to demonstrate high sense of accountability and transparency in the management of…resources to their staff, stakeholders and beneficiaries…. successful grants management means that you have followed all the terms and conditions of the grant award,” he added.
Janice Dolar, DFID Education Advisor, said the priority is to support donors to get back on track to transform the economy.
“The UK government is pleased to be supporting the Ministry of Education to improve teacher education in Ghana and called on the recipients to use the fund for the intended purpose to attract the second phase of the fund.
Reverend Sister Elizabeth Amoako-Arhen, Principal of OLA College of Education and the President of National Conference of Principals of Teacher Training Colleges (PRINCOF), on behalf of her colleagues are grateful to government, Ministry of Education for coming to their aid at the right time.
She said T-TEL has come at the opportune time that they need to awake teacher training to response to the challenges of global trends.
Rev Sister Amoako-Arhen also pledged their commitment to ensure that the activities would be put to the right use to achieve the objectives set for it.
Source GNA