Salaga North holds first Best Teacher Award

The Salaga North Constituency in the East Gonja District has held its maiden edition of Best Teacher Award, to motivate teachers to stay in the communities, and help improve educational standards.

The move is also to reduce the consistent poor performance of 0.5 percent pass rate in the Basic Education Certificate Education Examinations (BECE) in the constituency.

Mr Alhassan Mumuni, Member of Parliament of Salaga North, speaking at the ceremony at Kpalbe, said out of the about seven junior high schools in the area, only one school recorded one percent, while the rest followed with a pass rate of 0.3 and zero percent.

The MP said education was one of the catalysts to reduce poverty, hunger and disease in the region, which needed a multifaceted approach to address the situation.

He said one of the challenges facing the educational sector was the lack of supervision, and that most of the teachers in the area lived in Tamale and commuted daily to school, adding that due to that they end lessons by 12 noon, and return to Tamale.

"Most teachers knowing that they were not strictly supervised, do not either attend school regularly to teach, or they render poor teaching services to the school children, which is affecting educational standards", he explained.

The MP said some of the schools lacked trained teachers, and only relied on visiting teachers who were unable to build strong foundations for the children. He appealed to parents to support their children to acquire knowledge, which was the best legacy they could bequeath to them.

In all, 12 teachers and circuit supervisors were awarded with various items and cash prizes, which amounted to GH¢ 20,000, sponsored by the MP through his share of the GETFund.

Mr Mohammed Amin Lukman, East Gonja Distrcit Chief Executive, commanded the MP for initiating the award, as well as donating four motor bikes for circuit supervision. He said plans were far advanced to improve on the educational infrastructure of the area, and that the constituency had been earmarked to benefit from a Senior High School.

Mr Lukman said the Assembly would soon start the construction of housing facilities at the ‘overseas’ areas, to accommodate circuit supervisors. He said the Assembly had also set aside about GH¢ 5000 to be used to organize extra classes for the junior high school BECE candidates to help improve upon their performance.

Mr Caesar Akanlu Kwotua, a teacher at the Janton Daashie Senior High School, was adjudged the over-all best teacher.