NaCCA's Chinese curriculum training raises questions amid Mahama's denial of nationwide language policy

A national teacher training workshop on a "new Chinese language curriculum," organised by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) and the Confucius Institute at the University of Cape Coast (UCC), appears to sit at odds with President John Dramani Mahama's recent assurance that no such policy has been approved by his government.

The NaCCA Training
The workshop, held at the Institute of Education's Conference Room, was aimed at equipping basic school teachers with the knowledge and skills needed to implement a new Chinese language curriculum.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, NaCCA's Deputy Director, Dr Eric Amoah, said the partnership between NaCCA and the Confucius Institute would strengthen curriculum development and create opportunities for language learning, cultural exchange and international collaboration.

He said the curriculum would prepare Ghanaian learners for an increasingly globalised world, and that the training would equip teachers with the knowledge, skills and confidence to deliver it effectively.

"Let us move forward hand in hand to build a legacy of learning and partnership that will endure for generations," he said.

The Chinese Director of the Confucius Institute at UCC, Prof Zang Yonghong, traced the institute's history from its founding in 2008 to its official launch in 2016, describing it as a hub for language learning, cultural exchange and academic collaboration built on partnership among UCC, its Chinese partner university and the Chinese Embassy.

The training was structured into six sessions, covering the 2026 Kindergarten and Primary Curriculum Review, the philosophy and structure of the new Chinese curriculum, expected learner proficiency levels, teaching and assessment methods, practical teaching exercises, and the role of Chinese language coordinators in schools.

Mahama's Denial
Just two days before the workshop details emerged, President Mahama had dismissed claims that his government had approved a policy to introduce Arabic and Chinese as subjects in Ghana's public schools.

Speaking on Saturday, September 12, during a citizens' engagement at the University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (UBIDS) in the Upper West Region, Mahama said no such policy had been approved by Cabinet and urged the public to disregard reports suggesting the languages were being introduced nationwide.

"No such policy has been approved by the cabinet that I chair. So let's put that matter to rest once and for all," he said.

He also questioned the logic of introducing Chinese while Ghana was still struggling to provide enough teachers for French, which he said remained important given the country's proximity to Francophone neighbours.

"We're not even getting a handle on the teaching of French. Why would we go and introduce Chinese?" he asked.

On Arabic, Mahama clarified that its teaching in some schools stems from English-Arabic schools established under the late President Jerry John Rawlings to encourage Muslim communities once reluctant to send children to school over fears of religious conversion, with Arabic teacher training ongoing specifically to support those schools.

"But there's no new policy to introduce Arabic and Chinese in all public schools in Ghana," he said.

The Apparent Contradiction
The two developments raise an unresolved question: NaCCA, a statutory curriculum body, has held a national training workshop explicitly built around implementing a "new Chinese language curriculum" for basic schools — language that suggests an approved curriculum exists and is being rolled out to teachers. Yet the President has stated plainly that no Cabinet-approved policy exists to introduce Chinese in public schools nationwide.

It remains unclear whether the NaCCA-led initiative is limited to a specific set of pilot or partner schools rather than the entire public school system, or whether the curriculum has been developed without full Cabinet ratification. Neither NaCCA nor the Presidency has directly addressed this apparent inconsistency.

Source: classfmonline.com

— ClassFm