187 Early Childhood Co-ordinators upgrade capacity

Kumasi, July 31, GNA - Quality education to all school-going age persons can be achieved, if solid foundation was laid at the lower level of education, Mr Joseph Kwabena Onyinah, Ashanti Regional Director of Education said on Thursday.

Speaking at a five-day capacity building workshop for 187 Regional and District Early Childhood (ECD) Co-ordinators organised by the Ghana Education Service (GES) in Kumasi, he said early childhood education was crucial for effective implementation of quality education system. Mr Onyinah, however, expressed worry about the practice where some trained teachers left the teaching work to school attendants in order to for them to attend to their private engagements. He also noted that some co-ordinators engaged in trading activities instead of monitoring and supervising the Kindergarten schools and urged them to desist from such acts.

Mr Daniel Amofa of the Teacher Education Division of the GES, Accra, said, the development of the country's human resource greatly depended on the effective teaching and learning in the pre-school. "Early Childhood Educators can make or unmake the children they teach", he noted and urged the participants to ensure that Kindergarten teachers did the right thing always.

Mr Amofa indicated that, the workshop was very relevant since a new education system had been introduced and urged them to take the training serious.

Reverend Father Francis Kusi-Ababio, Vice Principal of Saint Louis Training College, Kumasi who presided over the workshop, advised the participants to use the knowledge and experience acquired to help the pupils. 31 July 08