The Deputy Minister for Education, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, says Ghana’s education system is changing learning outcomes through various initiatives being implemented by the Education Ministry in collaboration with other partners.
He mentioned the Play-Based Methodology (PBM) learning being implemented by the Right To Play (an international educational advocacy institution) in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and its Agencies in some selected Basic Schools in the country as one of such interventions changing learning outcomes.
Rev. Ntim Fordjour announced this when he paid a visit to the Oshiyie Municipal Assembly Basic School at Oshiyie in Accra on Monday.
The visit to the school was to see at first-hand how the Play-Based Methodology learning project was impacting the learning process in the school.
The Play-Based Methodology project involves the training of teachers in how to use purposeful play method in teaching which in the end build the children’s confidence, leadership and communication skills as well as helps them become advocates for themselves and the community.
He recounted how the Right To Play was making a great impact on the beneficiary schools with over 32,000 pupils benefiting impacting on 2050 schools after the building of the capacity of over 50,800 teachers across the country.
Rev. Ntim Fordjour also mentioned the Ghana Accountability and Learning Outcomes Project (GALOP) being another intervention being implemented by the Education Ministry with funding from the World Bank.
He explained that the primary objective of GALOP is to enhance the quality of education in underperforming basic schools while promoting equity and accountability within the education sector in Ghana.
The Deputy Minister who is also the Member of Parliament for Assin South, described Ghanaian children as being among the most gifted in the world as they exhibit various skills that make them stand tall when it comes to education and other activities.
He explained that through good parental care and focus on their education, Ghanaians are able to excel in all endeavours and therefore urged all students to take their studies seriously to enable them to attain their future aspirations and dreams.
Rev. Ntim Fordjour, who was excited observing how the pupils and their teachers studied through various purposeful playing activities commended the Right To Play for their initiative which has brought about many changes in the way the children were responding to the lessons.
He hinted at plans to help extend the Play-Based Methodology to all basic schools across the country.
“My experience in all the classrooms visited was awesome. The enthusiasm of teachers. You have one of the best teachers in the country”. The Deputy Minister said.
“All our children are gifted and differently so and therefore we must provide a classroom that is positive, conducive to support their learning. And if there is any obstacle in their way we would remove it so that they can achieve the highest dream possible”. He said
The Deputy Minister indicated that the huge investment being made by the government into the education sector was due to the fact that education was key in poverty eradication.
The Country Director of Right To Play, Madam Josephine Mukakalisa, pledged to continue working very hard to ensure that the project continues to impact the lives of the pupils, their parents and the nation as a whole.
Again, she pledged to continue deepening the ties with all the stakeholders in the nation’s education sector to ensure the transformation of the nation’s economy through education.
The project involves building the capacity of teachers in the project schools to improve their teaching and learning skills to effectively use the play-based learning methodology
The training includes a positive learning environment, positive reinforcement, coaching and mentoring, leadership, and girl-child mentoring among others.
The project is currently operating in three regions and seven districts.
