The curriculum training bizarre: The sinking teaching profession
From time immemorial, teachers have been victims of circumstance and societal mockery.
Teachers are like the Fante name for a child who is born to his parents late “nyamekye” (God given) and instead of them being treated like kings and queens, they are like nuisance to the parents who gave birth to them.
Ranging from meagre salary, poor accommodation, low standards of living, low self esteem and low facial value; have been the daily paintings on the wall for people to read about us.
The recent Curriculum Training Program organized for teachers had concluded it all. That teachers had been taken for granted in this country by the Ghana Education Service (GES).
Attending a program for five days attracts only 100 Ghana cedis: Travel and Transport (TnT) and sitting allowance. This is a classic example of GES show of gross disregard for core actors of the service.
They could only garner 26 million Ghana cedis for such a monumental program of this nature just because it is about teachers. It’s only teachers who deserve peanut but not the booty.
What will surprise most teachers is that the initial 4,025 trainers who were trained to come and train others bagged 1,300 Ghana cedis on the average for their five day training.
Such an intensive program attracts only cocoa and bread, sobolo, GA kenkey and other unattractive meal. Someone has a reason to feast on the peanut as well.
Sometimes, one feels like being a teacher in this our country is synonymous to a crime and many regret it everyday.
Our teacher unions are not also helping. They are now a sub agency under GES. They only pretend they are shouting at the roof top but are deep seated with GES.
The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) especially, has failed teachers. It’s now a multi dollar teacher union in Ghana granting loan to The Gambia and other poor West African countries.
A money making machine cannot never think about the welfare of teachers. Their attitude is like a virus and has infected other unions.
Will the teaching profession ever become relevant and be regarded as any other profession? Will the profession which train human capital ever recover from shame and backwardness?
Cry oh mother Ghana for your teachers. Because they are languishing under a benefactor and crashing under dissatisfaction.
Can we collapse GNAT and rebuild it again? Because it’s like Jericho wall, only a trumpet of collective defection can bring the walls down.
Can we form non money collecting union and begin a revolution that will see the new face of a desperate profession?
Over to us teachers. Rise now or live to regret it and disappoint the future generations.
Yaw Arhinful
+233248829146
Teacher Revolutionist