UEW to run ‘education course’ for private school teachers

In collaboration with the Ghana National Council of Private Schools (GNACOPS), the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) is se to run a teacher education course for all about 200,000 teachers in private schools across the country.

In an interview with AcademicWeek.com, the Executive Director of GNACOPS, Enoch Kwasi Gyetuah said the degree course is aimed to upgrade private school teachers to be licensed by the National Teaching Council (NTC).

“The 200,000 unprofessional private school teachers after completion of the programme which will be run in hybrid mode will be award diploma and a one-year top-up for the award of a degree,” Obengfo Gyetuah told AcademicWeek.

“The programme has two pathways, those who have not had any programme at all and if had qualified into the Colleges of Education would have done four years; and those who have degrees but are not professionals to do a postgraduate diploma in education,” he added.

Designed by 6 faculty members of the University of Education, the teacher course forms part of efforts to promote teacher professionalization for untrained private school teachers in the country to be licensed and professionals.

Applicants with minimum entry requirements will automatically be admitted to the programme while applicants of 25 years and over will qualify to sit for the Mature Students Entrance Examination and gain admission if they pass.

However, applicants who do not fall into the two aforementioned categories would be offered the opportunity for an Access Course for three weeks following which they would be assessed and qualified students admitted. 

The forthcoming teacher education course to be offered by the Winneba-based University comes after the National Teaching Council threatened to sack all untrained and unlicensed private school teachers from classrooms by 2025.

Speaking in an interview, the Registrar of NTC, Christain Addai Poku speaking on Kokrokoo show said all unlicensed teachers have been given a three-year period to upgrade themselves and qualified to be licensed as professionals.

“We have given the unqualified teachers a 3-year period to be licensed, NTC is also in talks with the various teacher training institutions in the country to help such teachers upgrade themselves,” the Director for the Council said.