Teacher education in Ghana

The Colleges of Education Act, Act 847 was passed to give legal backing to the new status of the institutions in 2012.

The institutions have therefore been placed under the National Council for Tertiary Education (NCTE), being government agency responsible for the regulation of tertiary education institutions in Ghana.

Since the re-designation of Teacher Training Institutions as COEs in 2008, the institutions have faced challenges regarding supervision, infrastructure, governance and autonomy. This article, therefore, examines the challenges faced by the Colleges of Education as they consolidate their new status as tertiary education institutions.

Recommendations are also proffered to facilitate the strengthening of Colleges of Education as attractive options in tertiary education in Ghana.

Let's ask ourselves these first:

What are the issues affecting the autonomy of Colleges of Education?

What are the governance challenges facing Colleges of Education?

What is the state of human and material resources of Colleges of Education?

How could Colleges of Education be positioned to function effectively as tertiary education institutions?

Teacher education refers to the process of equipping individuals with knowledge, skills and attitudes required for teaching and developing children to become productive citizens.

The Government of Ghana (2002) defines teacher education as “the type of education and training given to, and acquired by, an individual to make him or her academically and professionally proficient and competent as a teacher”.

Some dignified officers stress that teacher education is a complex, multi-faceted process, made up of initial teacher training, in-service training (or continuing education) and lifelong education.

The Government of Ghana states that the objective of teacher education in Ghana is to train and develop the right type of teacher who is competent, committed and dedicated and such a teacher should be capable of:

Applying, extending and synthesizing various forms of knowledge;

Developing attitudes, values and dispositions that create a conducive environment for quality teaching and learning in schools;

Facilitating learning and motivating individual learners to fully realize their potential;

Adequately preparing the learner to participate fully in the national development effort (Government of Ghana).

The aforementioned objectives should be the hallmark of every educator. As such teacher education must be prioritized in this country.