Teacher Unions Oppose License Exams

The Ghana Teacher Unions have called on the National Teaching Council to suspend the Teacher Licensure Examination and fees to be charged.

According to the Unions, they were not privy to the format and procedures for the examinations and what went into the determination of the fees being charged at a cost of GH¢220.00.

This was in a statement signed by David Ofori Acheampong, the General Secretary of Ghana National Association of Teachers, Mr Eric Angel Carbonu, the President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers and Mr Ako Forson Herbert, the General Secretary Coalition of Concerned Teachers copied to the Ghana News Agency in Accra.

The Unions, stated that they were not against the Licensing of Teacher examination as announced by the Ministry of Education in accordance with the Education Act, 2008 (Act 778) but there should have been be a stakeholder consultation.

The Unions stated that, they had collaborated with Council in the implementation of some Provisions of the Act for the past six years, and there was the need for the Council to have considered their input on such issues.

According to the Unions, the Council promised to send a document to them through the Professor Kwasi Opoku-Amankwah, the Director General of the Ghana Education Service for their study and input, but nothing was done to that effect.

'We are very disappointed with the actions of the Council since they went behind this arrangement to issue a letter indicating the writing of the examination and the fees to be charged', the statement added.

The Unions see the actions by Council as a breach of trust and violation of good labour relations and called on Dr Mathew Opoku-Prempeh, the Minister of Education to convene an immediate stakeholder meeting to discuss and resolve the issues.

'We call on the Council to suspend the implementation of the examination and the fees to be charged pending the outcome of the stakeholder meeting with the Minister,' it added.