Accra, Nov. 8, GNA – The National Democratic Congress (NDC) will build a resilient education system based on its unwavering conviction to the cardinal role of education in molding the human resource and shaping a progressive and transformative destiny of the citizen.
“As a social democratic party, which puts people first, it is our firm belief that the human resource of our great nation is the most valuable asset. It is, therefore, our resolve that no child is left behind.
“We shall emphasis quality, access, affordability and relevance with our new approach to delivering education to all Ghanaians,” the NDC stated in its Election 2020 People’s Manifesto under the sub-heading; “providing globally competitive and quality education”.
The next NDC government will complement the current teaching and learning system by increasing the use of educational technologies; “E-learning in all educational institutions will be a major priority.
“We will embark on an aggressive programme of retraining both instructors and learners. We will invest massively in attaining the three Rs- Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic – at all levels with special emphasis on bridging the gap between private and public basic schools”.
The NDC said skills development, blended learning and the Internet of Things (IoTs) shall be at the heart of our modern educational reforms; “We will boldly confront the vexed issue of legal and medical education and introduce far-reaching reforms, which will create more opportunities for the youth”.
“We will realign education with the medium to long-term human resource development vision of the country. Usher in a new dawn for teachers through restoring the dignity of teachers and make them integral partners in national policy reforms”.
The next NDC Government under Mr John Dramani Mahama as President and Professor Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang as the Vice President would improve teacher conditions of service, incentives; and all-round availability of Teaching and Learning Materials (TLMs) would be apriority.
“We will deepen engagement with all schools through the community, unions and Parent-Teacher Associations (PTA) for efficient running of educational institutions,” the NDC stated.
The gains made by the previous NDC administration in quality outcomes, with all-time best performances in the Basic Education Certificate Examinations (BECE) and West African Secondary Schools Certificate Examinations (WASSCE).
“We are committed to implementing a better and improved Free Secondary Education Programme and will consequently end the dreaded double-track system which has increased cost of SHS education for some parents,” the NDC stated.
At the tertiary level, the next NDC government would reverse the current efforts at undermining academic freedom and the autonomy of our reputable public universities.
The Public Universities Bill will be discontinued if not passed by January 7, 2021; “It will be repealed if passed by then”.
The automatic posting of teachers without National Service and licensure exams will be reversed under the John Mahama Administration in 2021.
The next NDC Government would partner the private sector to provide educational infrastructure in the form of housing, hostels, transportation, and recreational facilities.
The NDC would emphasis on access to educational technologies for teachers, support staff, administrators, students and pupils.
“It will also improve the quality and relevance of service delivery, and education will be refocused on confidence-building, knowledge generation and acquisition, skills development for jobs as well as responsible citizenship,” the NDC stated.
The NDC will revisit and make functional the agenda of providing special incentives for teachers who accept postings to rural and deprived communities; increase teachers’ retention premium; train and motivate teachers and caregivers in special schools.
The NDC would abolish the mandatory national service and teacher licensure examinations for graduate teachers; restore automatic employment of newly trained teachers; fast track promotions and applications for academic progression; and open special credit lines to facilitate access to loans.
The next NDC Government will provide teachers with free tablets to facilitate teaching and learning; restore the automatic employment of newly trained teachers to improve the teacher-student ratio.
It will also collaborate with teacher unions to implement a special regime allowing teachers to own vehicles under affordable terms, and reinstate the payment of responsibility allowances to teachers.
GNA