Minister urges universities to ensure that curriculum is relevant

Koforidua, Nov. 20, GNA - Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, Minister of Education, on Friday challenged private universities to ensure that their curriculum was relevant and quality was high.

"While government welcomes private participation in tertiary education as a solution to improving access, if we are to derive benefits from education, we must ensure that curriculum is relevant". Mr Tettey-Enyo said this in a speech read on his behalf at the Sixth Convocation of the All Nations University College in Koforidua where 280 students graduated from the university. He indicated that the government cherished the private sector as a crucial partner in the development of tertiary education. Mr Tettey-Enyo noted that despite the several challenges confronting tertiary education administration, Ghana had enjoyed the reputation of having one of the best tertiary education systems in sub-Saharan African. He commended the University for taking up the challenge to prepare students to generate knowledge that would address society's most pressing problems.

Mr Tettey-Enyo tasked the universities to increase access without overcrowding classrooms and to improve quality with better learning resources without making education unaffordable. He appealed to private universities not to define access simply as increase in numbers but rather they should consider mechanisms like concessionary fees for the less fortunate in society and encourage female enrolment in traditionally male programmes. Mr Tettey-Enyo urged the graduands to be grateful to their parents for the investment they had made in them and their lectures for imparting knowledge to them.

Chief Justice Georgina Wood, in a speech read on her behalf, noted that it was time tertiary education considered positioning itself to take opportunities that were uncovered on daily basis. "In Ghana for instance, the discovery and anticipated exploitation of oil bring joy and great opportunities and we have to be responsible in preparing for the new revenue'.

Chief Justice Georgina Wood indicated that it therefore behoved the universities to design courses in line with the available opportunities so that Ghanaians could take their destiny into their own hands, especially, in the field of oil.

She said history showed that countries could only thrive when they invested in their people and infrastructure; promote multiple export industries, develop a skilled workforce and create space for small and medium-sized businesses that created jobs. "We should not think of seeking for unavailable jobs in a market that is already choked with unemployment and frustrated youth but rather aspire to create jobs and help employ the teeming unemployed youth roaming our streets".

Chief Justice Georgina Wood urged the graduates to count themselves fortunate among many for the simple reason that they had appreciable training on issues of Oil and Gas, Biomedical Engineering, Computer Science, Business and Entrepreneurship, Marketing and Management among others. "It must be noted that all the courses you have taken at this level may not necessarily determine your future career; it can only propel you towards the road map to your career"

She suggested that due to the increasing number of cases that had bedevilled the courts against the current capacity of the Judiciary, all educational institutions should consider incorporating in their entire educational curriculum, principles of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism.

"This will provide the students with the appropriate techniques and sharpen their skills to resolve minor conflicts that may arise in the course of their work out of school or even homes which will eventually reduce the backlog of cases recorded in the courts daily". 20 Nov. 10