Possible exodus of teachers from Ghana a cause for concern – Educationist

The Executive Director of the Institute for Education Studies, Peter Ani Partey says the possible exodus of teachers from the country is cause for concern.

The UK government’s new recruitment policy, which opens opportunities for teachers from African countries, could potentially lead to a mass exodus of teachers from Ghana to the UK.

This policy targets teachers with qualifications equivalent to their British counterparts and at least one year of teaching experience.

According to the National Teaching Council (NTC) of Ghana, there are approximately 10,000 teachers in Ghana who are certified to work abroad. These teachers must have qualifications equivalent to their British counterparts and at least one year of teaching experience.

The potential departure of such a large number of teachers could significantly impact Ghana’s educational system, possibly leading to a massive shortage of qualified teaching personnel within the country and affecting the quality of education.

Responding to whether it should be a cause for concern, Mr Partey said in an interview on The Big Issue on Citi TV on Saturday “It is something that we should not be very happy about. These teachers are leaving with the experience we need in our educational system. They are also leaving with the investment that we have made in them.”

“You know that when we are paying these teachers training allowances which we have said a long time ago should be scrapped, you are investing in them. When you are providing various resources for their training, you are investing in them. And the result is that at the end of the day, these people should come back and then support the development of our human capital.

“So if they are leaving then it means that you are not getting the needed return for the investment you have made in them,” he added.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum says the government is considering paying transfer grants to teachers willing to be posted to deprived communities.

He said the move was aimed at meeting the teacher-student ratio in the country.

Speaking at the National Teachers Day celebration in Takoradi, in the Western Region, Dr. Adutwum said that Ghana was not lacking teachers.

“If there is a need to pay transfer grants, we will pay it so that teachers can go to the places that need them the most. And we can forever put to rest this illusion that there is a shortage when there is no shortage.”

“There are so many people who are waiting to be posted to go and teach and when we get clearance we will do that. We are one of the few countries in the world where you can get 100 teachers today if you want them,” he said.

source: Citi Newsroom