Social media should be taught as a subject – Kobby Kyei

Ghanaian blogger, Augustus Koranteng Kyei popularly known as Kobby Kyei citing the impact of social media in the present World has called on Ghana Education Service to introduce it as a subject to be taught in various schools.

Speaking on GTV’s Breakfast show monitored by AcademicWeek, the Digital Marketer and Influencer said social media has become an everyday trend and is mostly used by many individuals including prospective students in the country.

“Instead of Senior High School students particularly females using the platform for unnecessary stuff like tweaking, they should be educated on the best way to use social media to improve their studies

I think GES must also introduce social media in the school curriculum because now social media is the older of the day and now a lot of the children are on social media, they are on Facebook and other platforms,” the blogger stated.

In a related development, the Ministry of Education (MoE) has partnered with the Ministry of Communications and Digitilition (MoCD) and Huawei Technologies to train 60,000 Senior High School female students on cyber security.

The training focus on the Cyber Security Act 2020 is aimed at providing ICT education to girls in the second-cycle institutions as well as equipping them with basic cyber security fundamentals to help them stay safe in cyberspace.

The Digitalisation Ministry in a post sighted by AcademicWeek said the pilot training will be conducted in three Regions including Ashanti, Eastern and Central Region. About 20,000 girls will benefit from the training in each region.

Starting in Ashanti Region, Wesley Girls SHS, Yaa Asantewaa SHS, St Louis, Serwaa Nyarko, Kumasi Girls, the Adventist Girls SHS, St Mary’s Girls, Afua Kobi Ampem Girls, St Monica’s, TI Ahmadiya and Prince of Peace are beneficiary schools.

In the Eastern Region, Senior High Schools (SHSs) to benefit from the intensive ICT training are Mamfe Methodist Girls, Aburi Girls, Krobo Girls, Diaspora Girls, St Roses, Islamic Girls and St Mary’s Vocational and Technical Institute.

Holy Child, Wesley Girls and Mfantseman Girls in the Central Region will also benefit from the programme. Female Colleges of Education in the selected Regions will also benefit from the ongoing cyber security training.

Topics to be treated at the Senior High Schools Girls in ICT program include the Child Online Protection Provisions in the New Cyber Security Act 2020 and the SMART Acronym which explains how to stay safe online.

The prospective Senior High Schools (SHSs) girls in the three selected Regions will also be trained on risks associated with the use of the internet which includes fake news; cyberbullying, sextortion, and cyberstalking among others.

On the Cyber Security Point of Contact, they would be sensitised on the need to report all cyber-related issues confronting them to the National Cyber Security Authority on shortcode 292 for a prompt response and assistance.