Female teacher trainee performance increases

The performance of the second year female teacher trainees of the Presbyterian College of Education (PCE) at Akropong Akuapem has increased due to all-female extra remedial sessions organised for the students.

The academic performance of the female teacher trainees since the inception of the Diploma in Basic Education (DBE) in 2005, was estimated to be low compared to that of their male counterparts.

The school, in improving the academic performance of the second year female teacher trainees, organised mentorship workshops, Gender responsive pedagogy workshops and remedial classes for the female teacher trainees.

Officials of the College stated at a Transforming Teacher Education and Learning (T-TEL) Challenge Fund End of Project Learning Event at Koforidua, Eastern Region.

T-TEL through the Challenge Fund disbursed GHC2.5 million to 31 Colleges of Education across the country, the end of project event was therefore created for sharing key lessons, showcasing achievements and exploring opportunities for taking best practices and results forward in their institutions and within the teacher education sector as a whole.

The T-TEL project also sought to harness the energy and expertise of stakeholders across the teacher education sector, with T-TEL incentivising innovation, inclusion, best practice and results ensuring Ghana had high quality student teachers ready to teach and inspire young people to lead the country’s progress and prosperity.

The Challenge Fund End of Project Learning Event was on the general theme: “Mobilising Local Resources and Partnership to Improve the Professional Preparation of Pre-service Teachers in Ghana’s Colleges of Education”.

The Presbyterian College of Education undertook a project aimed at improving academic performance of second year female teacher trainees.

The College identified unfavourable prep time, inadequate mentoring, too many tasks, low self-esteem as a result of previous performance and phobia for key subjects as factors that led to the low performance of the female teacher trainees.

The College therefore incorporated gender pedagogy workshops into its activities, and also increased school contact period to support female students in some critical subjects’ areas.

The College also organised quiz competition between Presbyterian College of Education (PCE) and the Presbyterian Women College of Education.

According to PCE the gender pedagogy workshop for lead mentors and mentors had strengthened the relation between the practising Schools and the college.

The Project Team commended the GCB Bank Akropong Branch for pledging financial support to sustain the project.

Mr Robbin Todd, T-TEL Team Leader explained that the Challenge Fun came at a critical moment for education in Ghana as the government and stakeholders were determined to address poor learning outcomes and recognised that teaching was both a barrier and a solution to progress.

He explained that the current education policy environment provided a platform for improving the core and technical skills of teachers, enabling the new policy framework for Pre-Tertiary Teacher Professional Development and Management to be implemented.

“Colleges of Education are already doing great work. They are ready to lead educational transformation in our nation. The future is bright and the possibilities are exciting.

“As a Government of Ghana programme T-TEL is providing continuous technical and funding support for the implementation of the new bachelor of education curriculum for training teachers,” she said.

Under the initiatives, T-TEL has been working with Universities to provide Continuous Professional Development support to enable all lecturers and tutors to understand all aspects of the new curriculum and deliver it effectively.

It has also focused on strengthening partnerships between partner schools and Colleges of Education, guided by a new School Partnerships Policy- to ensure that experienced teachers are effectively mentoring student teacher.

It provides support to all Colleges of Education to enable them to upgrade the qualifications of their tutors, within a four year transitional period, to meet the minimum requirements of the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE)

It also Supports Colleges to achieve their organisational objectives and development plans through a Payment By Results (PBR) approach, providing funding for Colleges of Education to use as they see it fit to improve their infrastructure and learning environment.

T-TEL Ghana is a four-year Government of Ghana Programme supported by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), through an investment of £17 million.

T-TEL is supporting the country’s 46 public Colleges of Education on their path to becoming tertiary “centres of excellence” and producing high quality teaching graduates who can ensure our children succeed at school.