Educationist Matthew Nyaaba says the government has not demonstrated commitment in enhancing teacher welfare and education in general.
He stated that the salary of teachers and other related benefits have not been the best from the elementary level to our tertiary institutions.
Mr. Nyaaba said although education is the bedrock of development, the government has not really demonstrated that it was prepared to introduce initiatives or policies to improve the quality of teaching and learning.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, he noted that there was a need for the government to invest in capacity-building teachers, invest in infrastructure, and provide them with the needed resources to enhance teaching and learning.
Reacting to the strike action declared by some teacher unions, he said the government ought to address these issues so the teachers will go back to the classroom and resume teaching.
The strike action he bemoaned affects the students the more with long-term ripple effects.
‘’When we hear teachers embarking on a strike, we become sad and wonder why our leaders have failed to prioritise the welfare of teachers. It was important for the government to remain committed to teacher welfare. When you compare our system to those abroad, especially America, that we have studied and implemented some of their activities, you will realise their teacher welfare in Ghana is terrible. I participated in several strike actions as a teacher in Ghana, and nothing changed. But when I travelled abroad, I experienced different things. We have also politicised our education sector with no policy that is national in nature and subjected to political interference,’’ he stated.
The sector he added is not something teachers benefit from, and because of that, some of them have left the country to seek greener pastures abroad.
Matthew Nyaaba is a second-year Ph.D. candidate in Teacher Education and Elementary Education at the University of Georgia’s Mary Frances Early College of Education, with a background in student affairs. Previously, he served as a lecturer at Gambaga College of Education and UDS Tamale.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
