Investigating teachers' experience and self-efficacy beliefs across gender in implementing the new standards-based curriculum in Ghana (original) (raw)
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Teachers’ perception of the new educational curriculum in Ghana
2020
The present study examined the perception of teachers of the new educational curriculum in Ghana. Responses from six teachers interviewed were developed into a questionnaire and posted on the websites of teacher unions via WhatsApp. In all, 74 teachers responded. From the study teachers perceived that the new curriculum is important as it will encourage group work, assist students to get lifelong skills, prepare students for the job market, promote inclusive education, promote gender equality, and considers Ghanaian students’ culture and society. The findings further revealed that the current curriculum does not includes difficult content for teaching but contains a lot of workloads, lacks teaching and learning materials and includes long class periods. Teachers were also of the view that the government should involve teachers in planning the curriculum, get books and learning materials ready, train teachers in advance and pilot a new curriculum before implementation. In a nutshell,...
Creative Education, 2023
The success of an educational innovation depends on the extent to which players embrace and implement it in the classroom. The study adopted the Concerns Based Adoption Model to assess the stages of concerns of pre-tertiary school teachers in the New Juaben North Municipality on the standards-based curriculum's adoption in Ghana. Framed in the transformative philosophical paradigm, the study draws on survey design with quantitative approaches. The stages of concerns questionnaire of the CBAM was administered to 186 teachers sampled by convenience and stratified sampling approaches. The study found that the stages of concerns of teachers are ranked as consequence, informational, collaboration, personal, refocusing, management, and unconcerned; the socio-demographic attributes of teachers are not good predictors of their stages of concerns; with the exception of gender and the category of school teachers teach, statistically significant differences exists between their stages of concerns. Teacher engagement with curriculum committees to help identify students' and teachers' needs with the standards-based curriculum is recommended. Also, teachers should be involved in the development of future curricula. Attention should not be given to teachers based on their gender and whether they teach in public or privates schools because based on these variables, teachers are indifferent.
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It should be the hallmark of every government to ensure that quality education exists in her country since education is the major tool for national development. The aim of this paper is to examine the Ghanaian educational system with the view to bringing out some of the numerous challenges and constraints that hinder its quality and standard so that appropriate recommendations could be made to arrest some of the problems. It is a fact that Ghana has experienced various forms of education since pre-colonial era. It is without prejudice to say that as the various governments make such changes with the intentions of raising the quality of life of the people, the emerging quality of education inherent in the reforms seems to be a mirage. A review of the different education reform committee reports has been done. The study has also examined all the levels of educational hierarchy namely kindergarten, primary, junior high, senior high, technical/vocational and tertiary education levels. The major findings, which include inadequate standardized human and material resources, poor management and supervision, lack of funding and poor conditions of service for employees of the educational system culminate in low productivity. In view of these, pragmatic recommendations have been made to describe the way forward for the attention of all stakeholders in education.
Educational Reforms in Ghana: Past and Present
This historical study addresses the question of inconsistency in the Educational policies of Ghana focusing on the impact on Senior Secondary School Education. It examines the persistent adjustment of Educational reforms witnessed in Ghana whenever there is a change in government. The study acknowledges the frantic efforts made by successive governments since independence to reform the educational system of Ghana to meet the basic requirements to meet the developmental needs of the country. The study traces the history of colonial education and the tremendous contributions of missionaries in the establishment of formal education in the region. The effort of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah to inculcate African Studies into the British inherited system of Education is discussed in this study. Various adaptations of foreign models of education were also examined. Using qualitative approach and secondary sources, the study highlights the structure of Ghana's Educational System and the major educational reforms introduced by both Military and Civilian Governments. The study further highlights the fundamental reasons behind the implementation of various reforms by Governments when in power
Discussion Paper 17. Learning to Teach in Ghana: an Evaluation of Curriculum Delivery
2000
1 Chapter 1: Introduction 2 1.1 Overview 2 1.2 Initial Teacher Training in Ghana: Critique of Focus and Purpose 2 1.3 Purpose of this Study 4 Chapter 2: Methodology 6 2.1 Approach 6 2.2 Sample 6 2.3 Research Questions 7 Chapter 3: Profile of Exiting Teacher Trainees 9 3.1 Who is doing the learning? 9 3.2 Prior Teaching Experience 10 3.3 Family and Socio-economic background 10 3.4 Discussion 11 Chapter 4: Curriculum Issues 14 4.1 Analysis of the Survey Results 14 Chapter 5: Teaching Practice 17 5.1 Teaching Practice: General Organisation 17 5.2 Teaching Practice: The Survey Findings 17 Chapter 6: Teaching Practice: The Student Teachers’ Experiences 20 6.1 Gaps between Theory and Practice 20 6.2 Teaching Practice Supervision: Tensions and Contradictions 22 Chapter 7: Student Teachers’ Beliefs about Teaching and the Profession 24 7.
Open Access Library Journal, 2024
The process of converting curriculum plans or intentions into practice, that is to say moving from page to playground, is agreed by curriculum experts as the most critical stage of the educational transformation development. This process sometimes meets challenges that may cause implementation failure. This study reviewed relevant literature on the series of curricula that have been implemented in Ghana from 1951 to 2019. In the review, some perceptions of teachers about the implementation of the recent and now-in-use Standard-Based Curriculum (SBC) were presented. The review was done through content analysis and teachers' interviews. The content of six curricula was reviewed and ten basic teachers were interviewed. The content analysis shows that two courses, Ghanaian History and Our World Our People (Citizenship Education) have been introduced at the foundational level through the SBC. Also, the main areas of emphasis for the SBC are Mathematics, English Language, Science, Creative Arts and Computer Literacy. The findings from the interviews show that teachers believe that the SBC would encourage group work, assist learners to get lifelong skills, prepare learners for the job market, promote inclusive education, promote gender equality, and promote Ghanaian culture and society. This was concluded that the current curriculum is updated and proactive as compared to the previous curriculum. However, they believe that the SBC lacks teaching and learning materials, and comes with the challenge of collaboration and management since teachers were not well trained to implement it. It is recommended that professional development workshops and in-service training should be organised periodically for practicing teachers, who will in turn mentor learner-teachers and also build on their experience to enhance teaching and learning.
The 1987 Junior secondary-school Reform in Ghana: Vocational or Prevocational in nature
2004
The secondary-education system in Ghana was reorganised in the early 1980s. The present study addresses one part of this reform: the attempt to introduce a more vocationally oriented curriculum in junior secondary schools. The findings on which this study is based are drawn from interviews at several levels as well as from documentary analysis and case studies. It is shown how planned changes were not clearly conceptualised and how a serious lack of communication has continued to exist between the various elements of the education system. Classroom observation also reveals that the ideas originally laid out in the National Education Policy - such as integrated approaches to subject matter, student involvement, and problem-oriented teaching methods -- have not been effectively implemented by teachers.
2007
The purpose of this study was to examine Ghana' s education reform initiatives between 1975 and 1996 in the light of contemporary linguistic and diversity issues. The goal was to identify emerging themes and determine the extent to which Ghana' s education reform can be improved by drawing upon the rich resources of education reforms in both Ghana and the U. S. The study sought to create a broader framework for understanding Ghana' s education system by situating it in the contexts of debates and practices in English education in the United States. The context for this study included multiple years of educational reforms in Ghana and the United States as well as the educational reform initiatives put forward by various governments and agencies. This study addressed a number of research questions related to reform initiatives in Ghana' s educational programs between 1975 and 1996? Drawing upon Kirk and Miller (1986), Bissex (1990), Denzin and Lincoln (2000), the study utilized a qualitative and interpretive case study format to present a critical analysis of issues emerging from Ghana' s educational reform documents. In this study, the argument had been made that, the desire to restructure the education system of Ghana, must include expansion of the -iii -processes of negotiating alternate approaches to education reforms in the nation. Thus, this study drew attention to the educational aims in the U. S. by providing an analysis of educational models in the U. S. education system that might help Ghana to meet the challenge of teaching literacy in its culturally and linguistically diverse classroom. The main research question addressed in this study was, " What are the emerging issues that characterized reform initiatives in Ghana' s educational programs between 1975 and 1996?"Data analyzed by the researcher revealed that the Ghanaian educational reforms articulated democratic and transformative goals in order to address the socio-economic realities of Ghana; however, the adoption of undemocratic procedures tended to result in dismal outcomes of the educational reform efforts. The lack of programmatic effort and assessments by policy makers tended to create gaps that resulted from the pervasive lack of coordination between education policy and education practice, particularly teacher preparation and classroom practice. The solution that this researcher suggests is the reconciliation of the problem by expanding the notion of democracy to involve the active role of all actors in the education reform process, with deliberate inclusion of classroom teachers and teacher preparation program administrators. Additional findings are described in the dissertation. -iv -Finally, an emergent theoretical model identified desired educational goals and inter-connected variables in the Ghanaian society. The study includes recommendations for further research. --iv DEDICATION for my grandmother, Afeafa Fiador Agbemabiese, who opened the door to the world of ideas for me, and my father, Leo Korbla Agbemabiese, who believed I could accomplish all my goals and provided the intellectual guidance. -v -ACKNOWLEDGMENT Along the long, steep and winding path I took in writing this dissertation, a number of individuals proved quite helpful. I owe a large keg of debt to them. The last words of my father were, " Girdle your loins and fight hard to complete the last chapter of my book." In a similar manner, my Grandmother, one day rhetorically expressed her concern about me in these words, " I wonder if he would one day write my name correctly in his notebook."She was expressing her misgivings to some elders of my village about me moving into the Catholic mission-house in order to complete my middle school education. Today, I have completed the last chapter of my father' s book and engraved Grandma' s name not only in my notebook but also on my memory. If those who reside in " Tsiefe"(the Land of the Dead) have ears, let Grandma and my father hear me, " I, your stammering son owe you a basketful of " akpe"(thanks) and " ahagowo"(kegs of palmwine for libation) for always being with me." My dissertation committee deserves my sincerest thanks and appreciation for the timely intervention and invaluable assistance, and encouragement they provided whether through private conversations, questions raised, or careful readings and comments on chapters of this dissertation. They include Dr. Charles Hancock, Professor of Education who -vi -directed this dissertation with caring and intensity; read and commented on each chapter, placed his professional acumen at my disposal, and became the greatest ally throughout the final dissertation journey and through his words of encouragement I have arrived at its completion. Dr. Mac Stewart, Associate Professor of Education, provided his invaluable Teacher Education expertise assistance, here-and-there, and offered suggestions that enriched my dissertation throughout the process. Dr. Valerie Lee, Professor of English, whose gift of support and positive influence provided invaluable resources indispensable not only to this dissertation by my academic career in general. Her immense assistance and suggestions brought my dissertation the needed focus. Dr. Kofi Anyidoho, Professor of English, University of Ghana, Legon Ghana, deserves mention for his continued encouragement and mentorship that has brought me this far in my academic and creative career. My most thanks is to my mother, Anna Ablavi Kwashie-Agbemabiese for her sacrifices and believing I can always succeed in whatever I put my hands to. I want to express a personal and special gratefulness to my daughters Sena, and son, Elikplim, for sacrificing immensely for me, putting themselves last, accepting my absence from their lives, their years of growing up, as their contribution to this dissertation, and spending countless nights without bedtime stories in order to make Dad' s dream for the family come true. -vii -I will like to thank Ann B. Walker, for her indispensable advice and support and being instrumental in my successful completion of this dissertation. I want everyone who knows and ever meets B. Joyce Robinson to thank her for her spiritual and moral support, for her stimulating words that cheered me on and continue to amaze me with an incredible energy. She was and still is my ' prop'in distress. Special mention must be made of Mr. Foster Fraser. Mr. Fraser deserves many thanks for his encouragement, nourishment from his world of knowledge and ideas, enthusiasm and commitment to my welfare, academically and socially. Mr. Foster Fraser " medudor wo, loo."A thousand thanks to Dr. Isaac Mowoe and Dr. Paulette Pierce, for their insights and thoughtful questions and willingness to stand by me in all adversity ever since I arrived in the U. S. I want to mention Ms. Dzigbordi Yawa K. L Grooms for her love, support, and her gently prodding intellectual curiosity that often challenges my often taken-for-granted assumptions. Special recognition to my brothers Dr. Charles Agbemabiese and Dr. Martin Agbemabiese and cousin Dr. Dela Harlley for their numerous sacrifices, kindness, advice, judgment and care in the dreary years of my dissertation. God bless them. I want to say a special thanks to my friend Dr. Edward Fekpe and his family for being a post in my fence in thick and thin, rain and shine. Words can never describe Mr. Emeka Aniagolu, Mr. Godwin Dogbey, and Mr. Kordzo Willie Agbalevu. They are a friend and brother whose -viii -unqualified and selfless dedication to my welfare in social as well as in academic arenas has no equal. I owe them a lifelong gratitude. And for Mr. A. D. Agbewornu, my uncle who became my father and confidant, " Mawu neyra wo"(God bless you) for keeping the fire in the hearth at home alive and fresh. I am also indebted to Sherri and Bryon Wallington (Mr./Mrs.) for the support they always give when my computer refuses to listen to my ' cries.' " The Mouth,"according to an Ewe proverb, " cannot count the colony of the mice."I have many people to thank than this page can hold. Since space will not allow me to acknowledge their generous support by naming them individually, let me ask for their pardon. I extend my deepest appreciation and gratitude to them for giving me the opportunity to learn and grow professionally from each of them. To all, let me say, " Akpe nami loo. Miawoe wor dor"(Thanks to everybody for a noble work done). Finally and most importantly, I thank the Supreme Being and the Tutelary Spirits of my departed ancestors for showing me that through them all things are possible. -ix -VITAE January 12, 1965… … … Born, Abor V. R. Ghana
The New Standard Based Curriculum in Ghana; Prospects, Challenges and the Way Forward
Journal of Education and Practice, 2023
The study aimed at assessing the standard based curriculum recently introduced; the training given to teachers and the implementation challenges teachers are confronted with. Methodology: Descriptive design was employed for the study. Quantitative data was collected from 200 Basic School Teachers in the Western Region of Ghana using a questionnaire. Data on the two research questions were analyzed using mean and standard deviation. Also, One way ANOVA was used to test the two hypotheses formulated for the study. Findings: The findings of the study showed that teachers were adequately trained on the new standard based curriculum before its implementation. Unfortunately, the study revealed that teachers and students lack the recommended teaching and learning materials. Interestingly, the results showed that there is a significant difference in the implementation of the standard based curriculum among teachers with regards to their level of teaching. On the other hand, the test on teachers' academic qualification showed no significant difference. Unique contribution to theory, policy and practice: It was recommended that government should provide adequate teaching and learning materials for teachers and students to enhance the successful implementation of the new standard base curriculum. Head-teachers are encouraged to intensify supervision of teachers and provide feedback for smooth implementation of the new standard base curriculum. Finally, National Council for Curriculum and Assessment should constantly evaluate the implementation of the new curriculum to able be to address area areas that will more attention for successful implementation.
The-Quantity-and-Quality-of-Teaching-The-Way-Forward-For-Teachers-in-Ghana.pdf
The Government of Ghana has since independence in 1957 made a number of reforms to the educational system with the aim to achieve efficiency, accessibility and equity in service delivery. Significant progress in all these areas has since been made over the years. However, what remains a challenge is the quality of education in terms of learning outcomes. This paper is part of a longitudinal study on teaching effectiveness in Ghana. Using a representative sample of 99 teachers in 73 primary schools, this paper examines teacher classroom behaviors. Based on classroom observations, it came out that the teachers emphasized more on the quantitative aspect of teaching which is basic to instruction. The quantity of instruction is necessary but insufficient for successful learning. A combination of quantity and quality of instruction in their right proportions is what can lead to successful student learning. Implications of the findings for teacher professional development are drawn.