By Michael Foli Jackidy
Ho (V/R), Nov 27, GNA – Mr Larry Agbador, the Deputy Executive Director, Centre for National Distance Learning and Open Schooling (CENDLOS), has outlined details of the newly launched National NextGen Teachers Challenge.
He described it as Ghana’s flagship national competition aimed at nurturing innovation, digital competence, and professional excellence among future teachers.
Launching the initiative in Ho at the 2025 Annual Conference of the Principals of Colleges of Education (PRINCOF), Mr Agbador said the competition would involve all 49 public Colleges of Education and the six Teacher Education Universities.
He said the Challenge would be hosted on MoE TV under the Ministry of Education and delivered in partnership with GTEC, PRINCOF, CTVET, CETAG, TTAG, T-TEL and other key agencies within the sector.
Mr Agbador described the Challenge as a national movement designed to “inspire and showcase innovation, pedagogical excellence, and digital proficiency among Ghana’s future teachers.”
The competition combines capacity-building with a multi-stage contest beginning with zonal qualifiers and ending with a National Grand Finale.
Participating student teachers would compete in: Teaching innovation pitches, Pedagogy and policy quizzes, Micro-teaching demonstrations, Innovation showcases
He said these activities would be guided by expert judges, mentors from colleges and universities, and structured feedback aimed at strengthening real classroom practice.
Guided by the theme: “Igniting Digital Innovation in Teaching,” the Challenge transformed classrooms into a national learning stage.
“It celebrates inclusive, creative and technology-enabled teaching aligned with the Education Strategic Plan (2018–2030), the National Teacher Standards, and the National Teacher Education Framework.”
Mr Agbador said the competition reflected Ghana’s diverse teacher education specialisations, basic and secondary education, TVET, inclusive as well as special needs education, and innovation in teacher support systems.
He added that gender balance and regional equity remained central to the design, and PRINCOF had proposed that each college fielded three male and three female contestants.
Beyond the contest, winning institutions would also receive innovation hubs and ICT upgrades, while the national champion would be awarded a modern ICT laboratory fitted with smart boards, desktop computers or laptops, and an “iBox” learning innovation by CENDLOS.
First and second runners-up would receive equipment grants and publicity packages.
Other awards would honour excellence in inclusive teaching, digital integration, assessment design, inspiring student teachers, outstanding mentors and exceptional female innovators.
Mr Agbador appealed to corporate bodies and development partners to support the programme, saying several institutions had already made commitments.
“We are embarking on a national sponsorship drive to ensure the necessary support reaches all participating colleges,” he added.
Mr Haruna Iddrisu, Minister of Education, in a speech read for him by Mr Stephen Kwaku Owusu, Director and Technical Advisor for Pre-Tertiary Education, said the initiative reflects the Ministry’s commitment to innovation and quality teacher preparation.
“This Challenge will inspire teacher trainees to explore new ideas, adopt digital solutions, and apply modern pedagogical approaches to meet the evolving needs of Ghanaian learners,” he said.
He reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to supporting PRINCOF, CENDLOS and stakeholders in advancing digital transformation and AI integration in teacher training.
Prof Samuel Atintono, the PRINCOF National President, described the collaboration with CENDLOS as one of the most strategic partnerships in recent years, highlighting the agency’s role in advancing distance learning, open schooling and technology integration nationwide.
He said the NextGen Teachers Challenge was not just another academic competition, but a bold intervention redefining teacher competence in the 21st century and aligned with PRINCOF’s mandate to strengthen teacher education.
Prof. Atintono commended the involvement of GTEC, the National Teaching Council (NTC), CTVET and development partners for supporting the transformation of teacher education to meet contemporary demands.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah/ Christabel Addo