From Sebastian R. Freiku
The Jackson College of Education (JCE) has produced a third batch of 1,836 newly trained teachers, forming the 2014 year group of the institution, to teach in both public and private schools, particularly, in the rural areas.
The number adds to 4,402, including 2,146 females, turned out over the last three years since the programme in Diploma in Basic education was initiated by the college. In 2012, 178 students were graduated, while 2,388 were churned out in 2013, Mrs. Theodosia W. Jackson, Principal of the College, announced at the Third Congregation at the weekend in Kumasi.
She said the mission of JCE is to assist the youth to acquire hope for a brighter future. With academic excellence, integrity, life-long learning, respect and stewardship as the core values of the school, Mrs. Jackson said JCE has 40 full time staff and employs an average of 700 tutors, 40 centre supervisors, and 10 Zonal Co-ordinators on part time basis in an academic year, in line with its objective to make more teachers available in the system, rather than have more basic schools without trained teachers.
Principal Jackson urged the students to desist from the canker of indiscipline and corruption, because effective schooling requires discipline and good moral conduct. The graduands, nine of whom came out with distinction, were from all 29 centres of the JCE throughout the country.
Mr. Solomon Amoah-Kusi of the Kumasi Centre of the College emerged the Overall Best Student, besides being the Best English and Science Student, while Miss Eunice Arthur also of the Kumasi Centre was adjudged the Best Female and Best Education Student.
Justin Kuu-Ere, Ansah Abu and Linda Anomah were the Best English, Best Maths and Best Teaching Practice Students respectively. Dr. Stephen Mitchual, representing Professor Mawutor Avoke, Vice Chancellor of the University of Education, Winneba, stressed the need for quality education to help the nation harness the resources for the benefit of humanity, pointing to teachers as the bedrock in the provision of quality pupils.
According to him, the most frustrating moment in a child’s educational career is to be in a classroom without a teacher, which, he said, affects the development of the full potential of a child, thus becoming indispensable assets to the nation. Dr. Mitchual commended JCE for accomplishing its mission of offering a three year Diploma Programme in Basic Education through Distance Learning across the 10 regions of the country.
Nana Adu Mensah Asare, Amakomhene, noted that the development of every nation rested on education whose value he explained as its lifelong effects on an individual, saying “it (education) is a liberator for life.”
The Amakomhene called for support for any initiative aimed at promoting quality education in Ghana. The Executive Director of the National Teaching Council, Dr. Augustine Tawiah, noted that absenteeism affects the performance of teachers, and advised the management of JCE to maintain high standards for quality education.
According to him, teacher absenteeism, which stood at 27% previously, had reduced to 9%, due to effective monitoring and supervision. In a valedictory speech, Mr. Solomon Amoah-Kusi (Overall Best Student) commended the founders of JCE for their vision of establishing the college, and appealed to the government and the Ghana Education Service (GES) to show interest in the products of the college to provide the needed quality education in the rural areas.