Teachers, parents cautioned against 'dubious fairy tales'

Saltpond (C/R), Dec. 7, GNA 96 Mrs Justina Esenam Torjagbo, Central Regional Director of Education, has expressed concern about the use of fairy tales with dubious characters for entertaining children in the homes and at school.

In a speech read for her at the annual conference of teachers of Ahmadiyya Muslim Schools in Central Region at Saltpond, Mrs Torjagbo noted that even though some of the characters were portrayed as cheats, swindlers and thieves parents and teachers seemed to endorse them by not frowning on their behaviour.

=93As a result children grow up to behave like them,=94 she held and called on teachers to select stories that challenge children to think and come out of difficult situations or solve problems..=94 The Regional Director of Education said things that contributed to children growing up to resign their fate to supernatural powers should be discouraged.

Mr Frank Eshun, Central Regional Chairman of Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), called for a review of the curriculum for teacher training colleges to take into account partnership between the colleges and schools.

Mr Eshun, who is the Headmaster of Obrachire Secondary Technical School, said in order to ensure that the teacher develop and grow in knowledge and methodology, there was the need to establish effective in-service programmes to take over from where the training colleges left off.

Speaking on 93Challenges of the Educational Reforms to Teachers=94, the GNAT Chairman intimated that no education policy could succeed without teacher motivation and attention to provision of educational facilities and effective monitoring and supervision. Miss Vivian Etroo, Mfantseman District Director of Education, noted that the inability of pupils to read and understand what they have read was the cause of their poor performance in examinations.

Speaking on 93Falling Education Standards, what to do,=94 Miss Etroo said out of 3,010 students presented for the 2006 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in the District, only 1,021, representing 33 per cent, had aggregate six to 30 required by a student to qualify for admission into a Senior Secondary School.

Mr Rorbert Quainoo-Arthur, Mfantseman District Chief Executive (DCE), urged teachers to constantly upgrade themselves, saying, 93this world of ours is so dynamic that what was yesterday, might not be applicable today, you need to prepare yourselves to be able to catch up with the changing world, particularly in the area of Information Communication Technology (ICT).

=93I do not believe that the future will belong to those who are content with the present, I do not believe the future will belong to the cynics, or to those who stand on the sideline. The future will belong to those who have passion and to those who are willing to make personal commitment to make the country better.

The future will belong to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams,=94 the DCE stated.

Mr Osam Abakah, Central Regional Manager of Ahmadiyya Muslim Education Unit, said the Unit had 13 Kindergartens, 16 Primary, 15 Junior secondary Schools and two Senior Secondary Schools in the Region. Mr Jibrin Dimbie, general Manager, Ahmadiyya Muslim Education Unit, urged teachers not to regard children as being ignorant. The General Manager urged teachers not to frustrate children because of poor condition of service, saying teachers knew the conditions before choosing to be a teacher. The theme for the day's conference was 93Education as Key to Good Moral Life and National Development 96 the role of the Teacher=94. 07 Dec. 06