NDC’s Sammy Gyamfi Defends Mahama’s Pledge to Abolish Teacher Licensure Exams with 12 Arguments

Ferdinand | EducationGhana | November 19 | NDC’s Sammy Gyamfi Defends Mahama’s Pledge to Abolish Teacher Licensure Exams with 12 Arguments

In a spirited defence, Sammy Gyamfi, NDC’s National Communications Officer, supports John Mahama’s promise to scrap Teacher Licensure Exams, labelling them as a tactic to limit teacher recruitment by the current administration.

Accra, Ghana- Sammy Gyamfi, the National Communications Officer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has vigorously defended former President John Mahama’s commitment to abolish the Teacher Licensure Exams (TLEs) if elected in 2024. Gyamfi argued that the exams, designed to assess teacher trainees for qualification, serve as a tactic by the current administration to suppress teacher recruitment.

Mahama’s Pledge

During his ‘Building Ghana Tour’ in the Bono Region, John Mahama pledged to eliminate the Teacher Licensure Exams, contending that subjecting teacher trainees to an additional assessment is unnecessary.

CETAG’s Concerns

The Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) expressed disagreement with Mahama’s stance, emphasizing the importance of the exams.

Gyamfi’s Defense

Sammy Gyamfi defended Mahama’s position by highlighting the rigorous four-year Bachelor of Education programs undertaken by teacher trainees. He questioned the need for an additional exam after comprehensive training.

Financial Constraints

Gyamfi accused the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government of using the Teacher Licensure Exams to reduce teacher recruitment due to financial constraints.

Pass Rates and Transparency

Gyamfi raised concerns about the lack of transparency in the marking scheme of the exams, stating that qualified teacher trainees often fail, leading to joblessness and, in some cases, resorting to bribery.

Delayed Employment

Even those who pass the exams, Gyamfi noted, often face delays in employment, further criticizing the government’s handling of teacher recruitment.

NDC’s Plan

Gyamfi reiterated the NDC’s commitment to strengthen pre-certification education standards and examinations in Colleges of Education, emphasizing the aim to ensure the quality of future teachers without unnecessary barriers.

Sammy Gyamfi’s robust defense of John Mahama’s promise to abolish the Teacher Licensure Exams sheds light on the NDC’s perspective regarding the exams’ impact on teacher recruitment and the perceived financial constraints influencing the process.

As the political discourse unfolds, the future of the Teacher Licensure Exams becomes a focal point in the broader conversation about education policy in Ghana.

Below is the full statement by the Sammy Gyamfi

MAHAMA’S PROMISE TO ABOLISH OBNOXIOUS TEACHERS’ LICENSURE EXAMINATION IS SOUND AND SENSIBLE

H.E John Mahama and the NDC fully supports the Licensing and Registration of Teachers as required by sections 12 & 13 of the Education Act (ACT 778), 2008. What we are vehemently opposed to, is the use of a needless Licensure Exam as the basis or precondition for licensing teachers. It’s as simple as that.

Below are the reasons why the Teachers’ Licensure Exam is obnoxious, hence must be abolished:

1. Currently, Teacher Trainees undertake 4-year (Bachelors of Education) degree programs in various Colleges of Education. During the 4-year academic period, Teacher Trainees are taught and examined in not less than fifty (50) courses over eight (8) semesters, that is, two semesters per year.

2. It is worthy of note, that the curriculum for each semester includes a mandatory field practical course called Supported Teaching in Schools (STS). This practical academic activity is climaxed with a rigorous full semester mandatory internship course during the first semester of level 400.

During this period, Teacher Trainees are assigned to the field to understudy mentors in classrooms and practically guided to teach. Trainees are required to prepare lesson notes, reflective journals among others, for assessment.

After successfully passing eight (8) semester examinations involving not less than 30 courses, including the mandatory full-semester internship course, Teacher Trainees graduate from school and are issued with Bachelors of Education Degree certificates.

1. One would have thought, that the right thing for government to do after this, would have been to simply license and employ these teachers and pay them the appropriate salary as the practice had always been, before the current NPP government took office. Sadly, this is not the case now.

2. In a dubious ploy by the failed Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government to suppress teacher recruitment, they now require Teacher Trainee graduates who have successfully passed all their course exams in school including the mandatory field internship program, to undertake another examination called Licensure Examination before they are licensed to teach- an examination that has no active guide whatsoever.

3. To add insult to injury, Teacher Trainees are also forced to undertake a one-year compulsory National Service. This is despite the fact that their 4-year academic curriculum already involves intense teaching support services to the state.

4. Many Teacher Trainee graduates end up being failed after taking the obnoxious licensure exam without even knowing why they were failed. These qualified teachers are made to stay home without any job. Out of desperation, some are compelled to pay bribes to officials of the National Teaching Council in order to get a license.

The marking scheme for the obnoxious licensure examination remains a mystery. The pass mark is whimsically and capriciously adjusted depending on the number of qualified teachers government intends to deny employment every year. Even worse is the fact that, some teachers who failed the obnoxious licensure exam on their first attempt but have eventually managed to pass the the exam have been denied posting and are siting home idle.

1. The reason for this injustice is simple; the failed Akufo-Addo government/Bawumia government simply does not have the financial capacity to employ all Teacher Trainee graduates, hence has devised a plan to use the obnoxious licensure exam to suppress the number of teachers they have to employ every year under the guise of licensing teachers. This elimination by rough tactic is simply unfair. This is why, the visionary Nation Builder, H.E John Dramani Mahama has promised to abolish it when elected in 2024.

2. For those who are concerned about quality assurance, it is worthy of note, that section 13 of the Education Act requires professional certification as the basis for licensing and registering Teachers. Thus, any policy or proposal intended to improve quality assurance must focus on improving pre-certification education standards and examination in Colleges of Education. This is precisely what John Mahama is talking about.

3. If government thinks that all the academic examinations and field works Teacher Trainees are taken through during their 4-year programs in school are not enough for quality assurance, then what government ought to do is to improve pre-certification teaching and examination standards in line with best practices. Once that is done, there will be no need for another exam to license teachers after they have successfully graduated.

4. Using myself as an example, the pre-certification course and exam in the law school where I attended is very rigorous and competitive. Once you pass it and successfully undertake the mandatory internship course, you are licensed and called to the Bar.

You are not required to write another licensure exams before you are licensed as a lawyer. Neither are you required to undertake compulsory national service before you are licensed. You are only required to do pupillage after you are licensed as a lawyer. This practice is the same for doctors and other professional bodies.

1. For the avoidance of doubt, licensing is not the same as Licensure Examination. I am a licensed lawyer but I was not required to write any licensure exam before I was licensed as a lawyer.

The NDC started piloting the licensing of teachers in the year 2016 without examination. We were ready to fully rollout the policy for the 2016/2017 academic year before we lost power. See https://www.graphic.com.gh/news/general-news/new-teacher-licensing-starts-from-2016-17-academic-year.html

1. The visionary Nation Builder has spoken in very clear terms on this matter. No attempt to spin to this well-thought out policy will wash. The obnoxious Teachers’ Licensure Exams and superfluous National Service will be canceled after John Mahama is sworn in as President on 7th January, 2025. “Insha Allah!” Teacher trainees deserve to be automatically licensed and employed after successfully completing their 4-year programs.

SAMMY GYAMFI ESQ.
National Communications Officer, NDC

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