about africa education watch
TRANSCRIPT
About Africa Education Watch
Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) is an Education Policy Research and Advocacy
Organization working with Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Governments and the
Private Sector to promote an equitable, accountable and responsive education system
that assures of quality and equal opportunities for all. Working with partners in Ghana,
Sierra Leone, Liberia, Kenya and Nigeria, we envision a continent with globally
competitive human capital that drives economic and social development.
No part of this publication may be used or reproduced in any manner without prior
permission from the copyright holder except in the case of reviews duly acknowledged.
©Africa Education Watch
All rights reserved
November 2021
Cover Image Credit:
Teach for Nigeria
GlobalGiving.org
TABLE OF CONTENTS
About Africa Education Watch 1
List of Figures 3
List of Abbreviations 3
Executive Summary 4
Introduction 5
Background 6
Objectives 6
Methodology 7
Findings 8
Recommendations 27
Conclusion 28
Appendix: List of Schools Monitored 29
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Level of Compliance to COVID-19 Protocols among Schools 9
Figure 2: Remedial and Accelerated Learning 14
Figure 3: Availability of Broadcast Facilities 18
Figure 4: Distribution of Teaching and Learning Materials 21
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
BECE Basic Education Certificate Examination
BTS Back To School
CENDLOS Centre for National Distance Learning and Open Schooling
CoE Colleges of Education
CSO Civil Society Organisation
EDPs Education Development Partners
GALOP Ghana Accountability and Learning Outcomes Project
GBV Gender-Based Violence
GES Ghana Education Service
GhLA Ghana Library Authority
GoG Government of Ghana
ICT Information Communication Technology
JHS Junior High School
LMS Learning Management System
MoE Ministry of Education
MoH Ministry of Health
MoGCSP Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection
NTC National Teaching Council
PHEIC Public Health Emergency of International Concern
TLM Teaching and Learning Materials
T-tel Transforming Teaching Education and Learning
UCC University of Cape Coast
UDS University of Development Studies
UEW University of Education - Winneba
UG University of Ghana
VLST Virtual Learning Systems and Technologies
WASH Water Sanitation and Hygiene
WHO World Health Organization
The outbreak of the Coronavirus of 2019 (COVID-19) has redefined education by necessitating
the mainstreaming of virtual learning, health and safety, and school re-enrolment campaigns
after almost a year-long school closure. In response, Ghana’s Ministry of Education (MoE) has
been implementing its COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan since April 2020 with
about $15 million support from Education Development Partners (EDPs). This support, which is
nearing implementation completion is aimed at deploying virtual learning programs, building
Virtual Learning Technologies to mainstream e-learning into the education system including
teacher education, and improving re-entry to school by children, especially girls and rural
children who are most at risk of dropping out due to the 10-month long closure of schools, while
strengthening observance of COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
With support from OXFAM, Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) is reviewing the implementation
progress of Ghana’s COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan to ascertain the gains,
challenges, and opportunities for further improvement and policy direction at the beneficiary
level. This review was undertaken in 46 Public Basic Schools and 10 Colleges of Education (CoE)
across Ghana. The study population included 93 teachers, 45 students from Public Basic Schools
and 30 College of Education tutors.
Results from the study indicate a low level of compliance to COVID-19 health and safety
protocols in most Public Basic Schools, a lack of a vaccination policy for teachers, and a low
number of teachers being vaccinated. Also, there was evidence of the failure of most schools to
participate in the Back-to-School (BTS) Campaign, and high dropout rates in 35% of schools as a
result of pregnancy, early marriages, child labour, and lack of remedial learning interventions in
most public schools. The report further lays bare a lack of capacity-building training for some
teachers in the prevention of Gender-Based Violence (GBV), remedial and accelerated learning
support for poor-performing students, digital literacy, and content reform1.
While the report appreciates the establishment of the Edmodo Learning Management System for
the basic education sector, one year after its launch, less than 1% of students and teachers are
using the platform which cost over one million dollars to procure. The study finds that Public
Basic School teachers and students did not only have limited knowledge of its existence and use,
but also had no training in the use of online learning platforms.
The Colleges of Education (CoE) monitoring reveals among others, a commendable effort in
integrating virtual learning systems and technologies into their curriculum and pedagogy, with
digitized curriculum. However, some student teachers were not trained to enable them to
participate in remote learning. Apart from the poor access to internet connectivity, the study
revealed a high cost of internet data and the limited availability of access gadgets as the major
challenges facing the implementation of virtual learning interventions at the CoE.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1 Global Partnerships for Education Ghana, (2020)
The study recommends strengthening of GES’ BTS Campaign and its scaling up to all
communities and schools - public or private, resourcing of rural schools to conduct remedial and
accelerated learning support and access virtual learning programs, and strengthening the
observance of COVID-19 protocols in schools and the adoption of a vaccination policy for staff
and students in public and private schools. It strongly recommends a nationwide outreach to
mobilize the participation and support of parents, teachers, and students in lessons on the
Edmodo Learning Management Platform while providing laptops and regular internet allocations
to teachers to facilitate their engagement on the online system. It urges the MoE to deepen
transparency and accountability in the management of the $15 million Coordinated Education
Response Plan and other ongoing donor funded interventions by documenting and publishing
the processes and outcomes for public and stakeholder information and scrutiny during
implementation.
The outbreak and spread of COVID-19 sent shockwaves across the globe. With over 98 cases
and no deaths in 18 countries outside China, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, World Health
Organization (WHO) Director-General on 30th January 2020 declared the novel Coronavirus
outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), with the highest level of
alarm. Due to the rapid increase in the number of cases outside China to more than 118,000
infected persons in 114 countries, and 4,291 deaths across the globe, the WHO Director-General
on 11th March 2020, announced that the outbreak could be characterized as a pandemic2.
The pandemic had an enormous impact on education at every level all over the world as
lockdowns in response to COVID-19 interrupted traditional face-to-face schooling in most
countries. While the educational community made concerted efforts to maintain learning
continuity during this period, these efforts exacerbated existing inequities in education and
worsened existing barriers to accessing education among learners in the most marginalised
groups3. Having already impacted education by disrupting learning, schooling and exanimation
schedules, the pandemic also negatively impacted learners psychologically and socially as many
students shared feelings of stress, anxiety, isolation, and depression, which they linked to the
loss of contact with their school community and peer networks4. The pandemic also presented a
new challenge in education as teachers had to adapt to new pedagogical concepts and modes of
delivering their teaching, for which they may not have been trained.
These broad ranges of effects of the pandemic on education highlight the importance of
considering medium and long-term policies towards ensuring equitable access to learning
(physically or remotely), the observance of health and safety protocols, increased efforts to re-
enrol all students who have dropped out, and the achievement of the Sustainable Development
Goal 4 (SDGs).
INTRODUCTION
2 WHO, (2021)3 UNESCO and UNICEF, (2020)4 Priyadarshini and Bhaumik, (2020)
5 Kenu, Frimpong and Koram, (2020)6 Ministry of Education, Ghana, (2020b)7 UNESCO (2020)8 Ghana by Save the Children (2020) 9 Africa Education Watch, (2020)
The first two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ghana were reported on 12th March 2020 by the
Ministry of Health (MoH). 5Immediate measures aimed at detecting, containing, and preventing
the spread of the virus were instituted by the Government of Ghana (GoG) leading to a ban on
all public gatherings on 16th March 2020, and on 30th March 2020 a partial lockdown of Accra
including Kasoa in the Central region and Kumasi. This development affected educational
arrangements in the country as it led to the total closure of schools, colleges, and universities
impacting an estimated 9,253,063 learners between pre-school and Senior High School in both
public and private schools, as well as an estimated 0.5 million tertiary students and 450,000
teachers in public and private institutions6 7.
The entire educational system shutting down as a result of the pandemic threw more light on
numerous social and economic issues affecting not only teaching and learning in Ghana but also
easy access to quality education. Issues such as difficulty in accessing digital learning, increased
rate of teenage pregnancies, school dropouts, early marriages, and child labour have been
highlighted as some of the socio-economic problems associated with the prolonged closure of
schools in 8 and 9. These negative impacts were reported to be significantly higher for children
with disabilities, from deprived rural areas, and low-income households.
In response, the MoE has been implementing its COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response
Plan since April 2020 with about $15 million support from the EDPs. This support is aimed at
deploying virtual learning programs, building Virtual Learning Technologies to mainstream e-
learning into our education system, including teacher education, and improving re-entry to
school by children, especially girls and rural children most at risk of dropping out due to the 10-
month-long closure of schools, while strengthening observance of COVID-19 health and safety
protocols. Barely a year after implementation, there is scarcely a comprehensive independent
review of implementation progress to ascertain the gains, challenges, and opportunities for
further improvement. It is critical therefore for Civil Society Organizations (CSO) like Eduwatch to
monitor the efficiency and effectiveness with which the program is being implemented.
Objectives of the COVID-19 Resilience Monitoring
1. To review the effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, and sustainability issues emerging out of
the implementation of the Coordinated Education Response Plan.
2. To make recommendations aimed at influencing policy towards achieving strengthened
pandemic resilience and increased re-entry in schools.
BACKGROUND
10 Cresswell, (2014)
The study employed a mixed-method approach through integrating quantitative and qualitative
methods of data collection and analysis. A mixed-method approach was chosen, as either
quantitative or qualitative methods were not adequate in providing an in-depth understanding of
the complexities pertaining to the implementation of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education
Response Plan. Again, the use of a mixed method complements the strengths and weaknesses
of quantitative and qualitative methods10.
Key Informant Interviews, observations and review of relevant reports were used to gather data
in schools and CoE.
Scope
The study covered 46 Public Basic Schools selected across 6 regions in Ghana, and 10 CoE. The
regional distribution for respondents from the Public Basic School were Oti (1), Volta (15) Upper
West (1), Ashanti (10), Northern (16), and Central (3).
Sampling and Sample Size
A population of 138 respondents (Headteachers, Teachers, and Students) was randomly selected
from 46 Public Basic schools. In all, 45 (33%) were Basic School students while the remaining 93
(67%) were Basic School Teachers and Headteachers. From the 10 CoE, 30 tutors were sampled
for the study. In all, 168 respondents participated in this study.
Instruments and Procedure for data collection
A semi-structured interview guide for one-on-one interviews lasting about 45 to 60 minutes and
a questionnaire comprising both open and close-ended questions were deployed to collect data
from respondents from the 46 Basic Schools and 10 CoE. The data collection schedules were
based on the availability of each respondent. Even though questions were prepared in advance,
additional probing questions were also employed as follow-ups to what each respondent had
said to gain in-depth understanding of the issues.
Time-frame
The data collection exercise was conducted over two weeks starting from 10th September 2021
and ending on 29th September 2021.
Challenges
Attempts to engage the Ghana Library Authority (GhLA) and the Project Lead at the Ministry of
Education (MoE) proved futile, as there was no positive response to our request for interviews
over a two-month period. The agencies are the MoE, the Ghana Library Authority (GLA) and
Centre for National Distance Learning and Open Schooling (CENDLOS). The study therefore
relied on available reports and the perspectives of end users to assess the quality of delivery of
virtual learning interventions.
METHODOLOGY
11 Ghanatoday, (5th January, 2021)
FINDINGS
The findings of this study are presented in two parts; Public Basic Schools and CoE.
Public Basic School Level Monitoring
At the Public Basic School level, data is presented around three main themes related to the
implementation of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan in Ghana. These themes
include;
1. Safe school re-opening and re-entry
2. Back-To-School Pedagogy
3. Virtual Learning Intervention.
COVID-19 Health & Safety
Support to safe school reopening and re-entry is a major component of government’s COVID-19
Accelerated Response in the Education Sector. The scope of interventions included support to
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH); public awareness on safe school reopening and re-
entry; and remedial and accelerated learning program targeting poor performing students. The
study sought to ascertain the implementation of these interventions, one year after the
commencement of the Plan’s implementation in the sampled schools.
School Fumigation before Reopening
As part of safeguarding the health and safety of pupils, teachers, and non-teaching staff ahead
of safe school reopening, the MoE in collaboration with Zoomlion Ghana Limited, on 5th January
2021, announced a nationwide fumigation and disinfection of schools as part of the WASH
interventions, a subcomponent of the Coordinated Education Response Plan11. This study
therefore, sought to ascertain whether all Public Basic Schools sampled for this study were
fumigated before reopening.
The questions on COVID-19 health and safety were posed to only Headteachers and teachers,
with all respondents indicating their schools were duly fumigated before reopening. This
represented 100% of the total number of respondents sampled for this question. Again, the data
indicates that while an average of 79% of schools were fumigated once before schools
reopened, 21% of the schools were fumigated twice and in some cases more. A participant
explicitly stated:
“Yes, our school was fumigated before reopening on 15th
January, 2021 and I saw the fumigation process myself…I think it
was done twice.”
(Akrofuom Methodist Primary School, Akrofuom, Ashanti Region)
This finding suggests that the huge investments made by the government to fumigate and
disinfect all Public Basic Schools to make schools safe before reopening was successful as all
schools confirmed being fumigated. This shows some gains made in the implementation of the
Coordinated Education Response Plan.
Provision of Handwashing Materials
One of the expected deliverables of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan was the
deployment of handwashing materials (e.g., Veronica Buckets, soap, tissues, etc.) to all Public
Basic Schools in Ghana. The study assessed whether Public Basic Schools had adequate
provision of hand washing items.
Findings from the study indicate that 96% of the schools sampled had adequate provision of
handwashing materials while 4% confirmed having some provision but not in adequate quantity.
This suggests that, while positive gains have been made in getting handwashing materials to all
Public Basic Schools across the country, the problem of equitable distribution still exists as some
schools such as Tongor-Tsanakpe D/A Primary in the Volta region did not receive hand washing
materials in adequate quantities.
“No, in the beginning we had but as time went on our supply run
out and we haven’t had much now.”
(Tongor-Tsanakpe D/A Primary, Volta region)
Level of Compliance to COVID-19 Health and Safety Protocols
Prior to the reopening of schools, the GoG implemented some public health and safety protocols
aimed at slowing COVID-19 transmission in schools. These protocols included the washing of
hands, wearing of nose masks, using hand sanitizers, and observing social distance among
others. As part of this study, monitors assessed, weighed, and scored to determine the level of
compliance to the COVID-19 protocols among teachers and students and categorized this into
“low”, “intermediate” and “high”, based on a 1-5 overall rating from respondents.
The study revealed that, notwithstanding government and civil societies’ continuous advocacy
for strict compliance to COVID-19 protocols especially in public schools, 10% of schools sampled
for the study rated their compliance at 1, 39% rated their schools 2, 19% gave their schools 3
for compliance, 25% placed their schools at 4 and 7% rated their schools 5. With 1 and 2
ratings representing a low level of compliance, this data indicates that teachers and students in
49% of schools sampled did not comply with the COVID-19 health and safety protocols. The lack
of compliance among schools according to respondents was due to low supervision and low
compliance among the general public which seem to reflect in most Public Basic Schools. As
observed by our field officers in the Ashanti Region, there were several instances of students
and teachers without their nose masks while veronica buckets in schools had no water in them.
A respondent noted that;
“On a scale of 1-5, where one is least and 5 is highest, I score my
school 2 for COVID-19 protocol compliance. Teachers pull-down
masks when they are about to teach, students also complain
that it is discomforting so they do not wear it.”
(Kalpohin Anglican Junior High School (JHS) B, Tamale)
Again, it was noted that 19% of schools sampled for this study operated at the intermediate
compliance level with both teachers and students periodically complying with the mask-wearing
protocol but not the handwashing. Teachers and students in 32% of schools strictly adhered to
the COVID-19 protocols. According to a respondent;
“For compliance of students, I will give 4 out of 5 for students
and 5 out of 5 for teachers on a scale of 1-5”.
(Bimbila E/A Primary School, Nanumba North)
High complying schools noted that strict supervision and the availability of handwashing
materials were key reasons for the high level of compliance. This data suggests that, even
though a lot of schools are still complying with the protocols, a lot more have let down their
guard.
Vaccination Policies
In March 2021, the first phase of COVID-19 vaccine distribution commenced with the aim of
vaccinating Ghanaians specifically front-line workers and at-risk population. With over three
phases of vaccination exercises undertaken, our monitoring sought to verify whether there was a
deliberate policy as part of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan to vaccinate
Public Basic School teachers from COVID-19 and the number of teachers vaccinated currently in
the selected schools.
The findings indicate that there was no deliberate policy to vaccinate teachers as 98% of
headteachers and teachers interviewed for this study answered “NO” to the question of whether
there was a policy in place to vaccinate teachers.
“There was no particular or deliberate policy to vaccinate
teachers in my school, however, if teachers heard or saw a room
to vaccinate at a hospital, they took that opportunity.” (Teacher: Tutuka Methodist Primary A-Obuasi East, Ashanti Region)
Figure 1: Level of compliance to COVID-19 protocols among schools
49%
19%
32%
Low Intermediate High
Source: Eduwatch (2021) COVID-19 Resilience Monitoring Field Data
The findings also revealed that 68% of teachers sampled for this study have not been
vaccinated whiles the 32% had either taken one dose or were fully vaccinated. The data further
reveals that 80% of vaccinated teachers were those with easy access to vaccines because they
were located in regional and district capitals such as Obuasi, Cape Coast, Saltpond, and Tamale.
On the other hand, teachers in rural areas found it difficult to access vaccines, and without a
deliberate policy to vaccinate teachers nationwide, they have to battle the long queues at the
few designated COVID-19 vaccination health centers while making time to teach in the schools.
A respondent accounted that;
“They (vaccination team) came to Lepusi but the crowd was too
much. I am still trying to visit them at their clinic for the
vaccination”.
(Leprei JHS, Bimbila-Nanumba North)
This finding suggests the need to expand the scope of vaccinations to rural schools and
communities.
Re-Entry & Support for Most Vulnerable Students
The long school closure due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 in Ghana exacerbated already
existing inequalities in access to quality education. Apart from the disruption in teaching,
learners, especially girls from low-income households and students with disabilities faced a high
risk of not returning due to socio-economic reasons. Many girls either became pregnant, got
married off, or engaged in multiple labour activities, while boys mainly engaged in child labour to
support household income. To mitigate this, the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan
implemented a public awareness and communication campaign for safe school reopening and re-
entry.
It is on the back of this that Eduwatch sought to ascertain the participation of schools in the BTS
campaign, its effectiveness in terms of the number of students who returned to school, new
admissions, and most importantly, barriers to the reintegration of learners especially teenage
mothers into school. Whiles this was to enable Eduwatch to monitor the gains and challenges of
the implementation of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan, data on this will
enable us better appreciate issues affecting the education of vulnerable children; those
susceptible to dropping out, girls and children with disabilities to better advocate for their
educational rights now and beyond COVID-19.
Back to School Campaign
Even before schools re-opened during the COVID-19 break, the GES launched a BTS Campaign
as part of government’s COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan. The aim was to
prevent the dropout of girls, children with disabilities, and children from low-income households
etc. This campaign was also to act as a social call for parents and caregivers to send their wards
back to school. All Public Basic Schools in Ghana were expected to participate in a community
outreach campaign and design communications in a way that is child-friendly, accessible to
persons with low literacy, persons with disabilities, people in rural remote areas, and people who
lack technology.
Apart from Kalpohin Anglican JHS B, schools such as Kpando Anglican Basic School (Volta
Region), Owusu Sempa M.A School JHS (Ashanti Region), Kalpohin Anglican JHS B (Northern
Region), Shehu Umaru Basic School (Oti Region) were not part of the BTS Campaign.
Re-entry
To better appreciate the impact of the BTS Campaign on enrolment and effort by the
Coordinated Education Response Plan to support re-entry, the study sought information from
respondents on students’ return rate after reopening and new admissions. Results from the
study show that 65% of Public Basic Schools recorded a high return rate among students within
the first two weeks of reopening. According to responses from 65% of schools, all classrooms
recorded an average of 97% of students’ attendance within the second week of reopening. This
high student return rate was attributed to the boredom among learners due to the long closure
of schools and their quest to escape multiple household duties. A teacher shared his thought on
this;
“Yes, we reported on the first day and I think the response from
the students was excellent. The main occupation out here is
farming so the children after staying home for a very long time
wanted to come to school and they came in their numbers in the
first week. I will say 95 percent in the first week and most of
them came later.”
(Teacher, Odoben Methodist Basic School, Central Region, Ghana)
In contrast to the above, 35% of the schools sampled for this study revealed high dropout rates.
Most of these schools were in the rural areas of the Volta and Northern regions. Among the
affected schools were Makayili R/C JHS, (Bimbila) which recorded 46 dropouts; followed by
Leprei J.H.S (Bimbila) recording 40 dropouts, and then Anyiboboe M/A Basic (Volta) with 25
dropouts. These high dropouts according to respondents from these schools were associated
with family relocation, pregnancy and early marriages among young girls, and child labour
among some students especially boys. A teacher had this to say;
“No. Before COVID-19, they were 322 but after that we have 276
(139 boys and 137 girls)”
(Makayili R/C JHS, Bimbila, Nanumba North,)
Another respondent added that;
“No, about 8 did not return. 2 boys and 6 ladies; 3 got married
and 3 got pregnant…”.
(Bimbila E/A Primary School, Nanumba North)
These findings corroborate Eduwatch’s 2020 Ghana COVID-19 Back to School Monitoring Report
which found between 2 to 3 girls not reporting in 20% of basic schools during the limited re-
opening for final year JHS students, due to teenage pregnancy (75%) and marriage (25%). A
report by Save the Children also predicted ahead of re-opening that, globally, about 10 million
children, majority girls were unlikely to return to school for various socioeconomic reasons.
Notwithstanding the high dropout rates recorded in some schools, 87% of schools sampled for
the study recorded and honoured an average of 5-10 new admissions. The study revealed that
new admissions were highly recorded at the JHS 3 and KG 1 levels due to some students
returning to rewrite the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and those joining KG for
the first time. For a school like Tongor Tsanakpe D/A Primary, some learners’ admissions were
not honoured because they were already operating large class sizes so admitting more was
impossible for them. The headteacher explained that;
“No, we were not able to honour all admissions at the KG due to
large class sizes.”
(Tongor Tsanakpe D/A Primary- South Dayi District, Volta region)
Barriers to Re-entry
One of the key components of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan was to
ensure that school re-opening strategies do not hinder learners especially girls from re-entering
school. However, this study revealed community and peer stigmatization, early marriages,
pregnancies, migration, distance, the lack of family and financial support during and after
pregnancy, and postnatal-related complications as notable barriers hindering learners, especially
girls’ return to school. A teacher noted;
“...Another is the shyness and the fear of being stigmatized by
their friends but we speak to them”.
(Abura T. I Ahmadiya Basic School, Cape Coast)
In some schools, learners who did not return either re-enrolled in different schools or were
engaged in economic activities such as galamsey and petty trading.
Gender and Gender-Based Violence (GBV)
The COVID-19 crisis presented additional risks of gender inequalities especially GBV. As a result
of the prolonged school closures, younger girls were at risk of all types of GBV including physical
abuse, sexual exploitation, harassment and child trafficking. During the COVID-19 school
closures, an awareness creation campaign for building the capacity of teachers towards
safeguarding girls against GBV and provision of psychosocial support was earmarked as part of
the Coordinated Education Response Plan.
Of all the headteachers and teachers interviewed in this study, 58% confirmed having received
training in the area of Gender, Girls’ Education, and GBV. This training was received by some
teachers before school re-opening while a few of them received the training after school
reopened. A teacher confirmed;
“I have attended two workshops on GBV in schools…I will not
remember the date but it is just this term, and it included
menstrual hygiene…”
(New Nsuta M.A School-Obuasi Municipal, Ashanti region)
As a result of this training, whiles some schools had established an all-inclusive girls’ club where
weekly talk on issues such as adolescent reproductive health and girls’ education, etc., are held,
others had also set up committees on inclusive education and sexual harassment in their
schools. A teacher shared his experience;
“On the resultant effect, we have a girl child club now and we
speak to the young girls on a lot of things relating to their
personal hygiene and how to safeguard against sexual
harassments…”
(Teacher, Owusu Sempa M.A JHS, Obuasi East, Ashanti region)
On the other hand, 42% of respondents confirmed that no teacher in their school has received
any training in this regard. This situation is rather worrying considering the additional risk of
gender inequalities presented by the pandemic. These included schools such as, Kalandan SDA
J.H.S (Northern Region), St. Paul’s Methodist School (Upper West Region), Shehu Umaru Basic
School (Oti Region), Have Ando No. 2 Basic School (Volta Region) among others.
Back-To-School Pedagogy (Remedial and Accelerated Learning)
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, children in most Public Basic Schools were faced with
serious learning challenges; from their inability to read simple words to not being able to solve
basic arithmetic problems. Although the GES instituted virtual learning interventions on television
and radio, slower learning progress was expected among children in deprived communities
without electricity, poor performing and slow learners, among others who were likely to fall
further behind. Owing to this, one of the components of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education
Response Plan implementation was the rollout of remedial and accelerated learning support for
at-risk children and poor-performing students in over 5,000 schools after school reopening. This
study, therefore, sought to verify from respondents the effectiveness of the GES’ remedial and
accelerated learning support for at-risk and poor-performing students.
The chart below shows an analysis of the number of teachers who received training to enable
them rapidly assess students learning and deliver remedial and accelerated learning ahead of
school reopening.
The data presented above indicates that 77% of teachers interviewed for this study did not
receive any training to help them rapidly assess students’ learning and deliver remedial and
accelerated learning ahead of school reopening. According to respondents from New Nsuta M.A
School in Obuasi and St. Paul’s Methodist School in Wa, the only hint they got on offering
remedial learning to students was the communique from GES to schools directing them to
engage in recovery learning aimed at bringing all learners up to speed after the long break.
There was no support.
However, about 23% of teachers in the study indicated they received some level of training on
Remedial and Accelerated Learning interventions under the Ghana Accountability and Learning
Outcomes Project (GALOP) before schools reopened. According to these respondents, their
schools were selected among the 10,000 supposed beneficiaries of this piloted remedial
education programmes. These findings further suggest the existence of a key challenge in the
implementation of this critical component under the Coordinated Education Response Plan.
Due to the lack of training, 48% of schools failed to institute any remedial and accelerated
learning support for poor-performing students.
On the other hand, for schools that implemented remedial and accelerated learning, this was
nothing new to them but an ongoing support program in collaboration with the PTA to prepare
final year BECE candidates.
By design, this remedial learning support was organized after the normal school day to provide
extra tuition in areas learners were lagging. The headteacher of Leprei JHS, Bimbila, Nanumba
North stated that;
23%
77%
YES, received training
NO Did not receive anytraining
Figure 2: Remedial and Accelerated Learning
Source: Eduwatch (2021) COVID-19 Resilience Monitoring Field data
“Yes, we do. We have stayed back for at least 1 hour. We are
supposed to close at 2 PM, but because of the extra classes for
poor students we close at 3 PM and the PTA is aware of it. On the
nature of remedial learning, we cover topics we could not finish
and that helps the students a lot.”
Respondents, however, raised issues of lack of teaching and learning materials, especially
textbooks, teacher and student’s absenteeism as challenges affecting the implementation of
remedial interventions in their schools.
Other Pedagogical Challenges after Reopening
Teachers also faced other pedagogical challenges in the first year of the pandemic. This included
the slow-paced learning as a result of the long closure of schools and the amount time spent in
facilitating catch-up. Respondents reported having to revert to already taught lessons to bring all
learners up to speed. This was worsened by the lack of textbooks and other teaching materials,
increased working hours, curriculum indecision within the risk of a COVID-19 infection.
Prior to the closure of schools, Ghana commenced the implementation of a new primary school
curriculum but without textbooks. In addition, cabinet approved a new JHS Common Core
Curriculum which was scheduled for implementation in 2020/21 academic year. Persistent delays
in the procurement and supply of textbooks for the primary school curriculum, coupled with
weeks of confusion due to no communication by the GES on whether to use the old or new JHS
Curriculum affected the smooth roll out of teaching.
A teacher of Saltpond Catholic Girls School noted that;
“Wearing the nose mask and teaching was very difficult. The
mass promotion of the class six students into JHS 1 did not help
us as the recovery teaching wasn’t well planned. We did not even
know which curriculum to use for them.”
A National Virtual Learning Platform
Under the strengthening management for education sector resilience sub-component of the Plan,
the earmarked interventions included establishment of the first phase of a Learning Management
System (LMS), establishment of the framework for 30 percent of curated lessons for a proposed
Ghana National Knowledge and Skills Bank; and (c) alignment of policy reforms around
technology use in schools to facilitate teaching and learning12. These interventions were
scheduled to be implemented systemwide to cover both public and low-cost private basic
education schools and designed to support education sector resilience to future shocks by
building the digital infrastructure to support continuity of learning and an enabling policy
environment.
12 Ghana COVID-19 Accelerated Funding Application Form (2020)
The GES in collaboration with Ghana Library Authority (GhLA) undertook to acquire, adopt and
establish a robust state-of-the-art LMS (supported by a mobile application) to enable teachers to
create supplementary content and deliver online instruction; enable online capacity development
and collaboration through Professional Learning Communities; enable remote student
assessment, monitoring and tracking; and engage parents and communities in student learning.
The LMS would also have offline functionality which will bolster its robustness in response to
future remote learning or crises scenarios. While there are policy and institutional deliverables,
the study only sought to ascertain the existence and use of the LMS by teachers and students in
public basic schools13.
Learning Management System
The study confirms through its direct engagement with the system that, there exists an LMS,
called Edmodo which was launched in late 2020, and has since been functional. The Edmodo
virtual classroom provides a meeting place for teachers, students, and their parents to interact
and have lessons. The LMS which cost over one million dollars to procure, is designed for over 8
million students, teachers and their parents from both public and private basic schools.
Participation in the Edmodo LMS
The percentage distribution patterns for students’ and teachers’ participation in the Edmodo LMS
platform was expectedly low, as they earlier indicated not having any experience with LMSs. All
teachers and students interviewed had no knowledge of, never participated or registered on
Edmodo. However, some 3% of teachers had some experience with google classroom, another
free and open-source application in their private capacities. Asked about Edmodo, a respondent
(teacher) stated;
“I don’t have any idea about what you are saying”.
(Leprei JHS, Bimbila, Nanumba North)
The lack of knowledge of, and participation in Edmodo’s online lessons is further established
through an analysis of user data on the platform since its launch a year ago.
Analysis of Edmodo LMS User Data
The platform, which has been built to host over 8 million basic school students and over 400,000
teachers, had as of October 2021, been visited (or registered) only 12,441 students and 3, 122
teachers. That’s about 0.1 % of students and 0.75% of teachers in public and private basic
schools. In a Municipality like Adenta where there is 100% electricity connectivity and internet
reception, only 10 out of 3,116 teachers representing 0.32% and 53 out of about 60,000 basic
school students, representing 0.08% had ever used and registered on the Edmodo LMS14.
In a peri-urban Municipality like Asunafo North in the Ahafo Region, where there are about
46,000 basic school students and 2,000 teachers in public and private schools, only 42 teachers
(2.1%) and 17 students (0.03%) had registered on the platform. Implementing an online virtual
learning programme without the full participation and awareness of all schools, parents and
students will lead to failure.
12 Ghana COVID-19 Accelerated Funding Application Form (2020)14 http://edmodo.com.gh.
The inertia in mobilizing the participation of teachers, parents and students in the use the LMS is
worrying, especially when teachers whose presence and participation on the Edmodo LMS is a
pre-requisite for optimization are oblivious of its existence, one year after its launch. This raises
even more serious questions about the existence of an effective outreach strategy and the
priority accorded to the participation of teachers and learners on the platform, apart from its
procurement. Launching an LMS, one year before distributing laptops meant to be used in
assessing the LMS is not synergistic. The proper sequencing of activities is key to achieving its
full outcomes of every policy.
While the ongoing distribution of laptops to teachers is delayed but relevant to stimulating their
participation on the Edmodo LMS, it is equally relevant to train them in their use to undertake
virtual instruction and provide regular internet allocations for them.
Under the Strengthening remote education service delivery component of the
project, the following interventions were earmarked for implementation: (a) content
reform and delivery; and (b) in-service teacher training. The content reform include: the
development and deployment of accessible and inclusive tutorials through television and radio
(including subtitles, sign language, captions); establishment of an online and offline (toll-free
helpdesk) for teacher and student remote assistance; deployment of pre-loaded content devices
(targeted at approximately 10,000 students with special education needs); and uploading of all
education content on enhanced Digital Library linked to the Learning Management System
(LMS). The development of content for delivery through radio will be aligned with ongoing
interventions supported by UNICEF and USAID. The Plan acknowledges that while approximately
60 percent of children in Ghana can be reached through TV or radio, an additional 500,000
children who do not have access to TV, radio or other technologies, will be reached through the
printing and distribution of teaching and learning materials15.
Digital Content on LMS
Close to one year after its launch by the MoE, there is still no curriculum related content
uploaded on the LMS, even though there are other supplementary content not specific to Ghana
but for learners worldwide. The principal aim of spending over a million dollars on Edmodo,
which is a free and open-source application was to create local curriculum content for Ghana and
gain enhanced access for students, teachers and parents to use the procured customised
functionalities.
Delivery of Audio-Visual Materials
The results of the study revealed that only 16% of public basic schools received audio-visual
materials under the Coordinated Education Response Plan. Some recipient schools included
Anyiboboe M/A Basic (Volta Region), Abura T.I Ahmadiyya (Central Region) and Akrofuom
Methodist Primary School (Ashanti Region).
“Yes, we received an audio lesson content from Ghana Radio
Learning Broadcast on their own pen drive. It was just for English
lessons” (Head Teacher, Akrofuom Methodist Primary School, Ashanti Region.)
15 Ghana COVID-19 Accelerated Funding Application Form (2020)
Another respondent added that,
“Yes, we did receive. I think it was basically English and it was for
KG to Class 3…”
(Abura T.I Ahmadiyya, Central Region.)
In contrast to the above finding, 84% of teachers revealed that their schools had not received
any pre-loaded audio-visual materials as part of the Coordinated Education Response Plan.
Among the 84% of schools were Peki Dzake EP Primary C (Volta Region), Odoben Methodist
Basic School (Central Region), Odumasi M.A J.H.S (Ashanti Region) and Tahiniya Islamic Primary
School (Northern Region).
“No. we got only books but not audios or videos.”
(Teacher, Tahiniya Islamic Primary School, Northern Region)
Whiles some schools were not hopeful that they would receive these materials anytime soon,
others such as Odumasi M/A J.H.S remained optimistic that the time will come. The question
therefore remains when will these schools receive their deliveries.
“According to my headmaster nothing of that sort has been
received in this school. Maybe it will come later.”
(Teacher, Odumasi MA J.H.S, Ashanti Region)
This finding suggests a gap between the project framework and its implementation and
feedback mechanisms, as the deployed pre-loaded audio-visual materials to most public basic
schools did not reach them .”
Broadcasting Facilities in Schools
The use of audio-visual content in schools is possible with the availability of broadcasting
facilities such as computers, audio players and television sets. As part of this study, Eduwatch
sought to find out from respondents if their schools had the facilities to deliver or broadcast
audio-visual content; and whether teachers have been delivering the virtual lessons.
Schools with Broadcast facilities
32%
Schools without broadcast facilities
68%
Schools with Broadcast facilities Schools without broadcast facilities
Figure 3: Availability of Broadcast Facilities
Source: Eduwatch (2021) COVID-19 Resilience Monitoring Field data
As shown in Figure 3, 32% of schools revealed they have some facilities necessary to broadcast
content to learners. These facilities included computers, audio players and television sets.
However, respondents were quick to add that some of the gadgets were obsolete and limited in
number. On the other hand, 68% of schools revealed they had no broadcasting gadgets in their
schools to broadcast any audio-visual content. This finding further brings to the fore the need to
resource all public basic schools with virtual learning technologies and equipment, especially
television sets and digital audio players, before the rollout of any virtual learning interventions.
Although it remains unclear government’s strategy to extend virtual learning gadgets to rural
communities without internet and electricity, it is necessary for the MoE to provide offline
platforms where content could be assessed by rural students. Providing group learning gadgets
like 50-inch tablets for a class, instead of personal tablets for each student, is an economical
option for consideration.
Training on Digital Literacy
The National Digital Literacy project was designed as part of a critical step to ensure continued
virtual interaction between teachers and students while building resilience in the medium term
against a resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic or other such future pandemics. This process of
supplying devices to teachers and students, and building their capacity on how to use same in
the teaching and learning process. Being integral to the virtual learning interventions rolled out
by the MOE/GES, this study sought to verify whether teachers were involved in any training in
digital literacy, and the delivery of lessons virtually.
While no devices had yet been supplied to teachers at the time of data collection, plans were far
advanced to commence the distribution of laptops to teachers under an agreement where
government shared the cost with teachers by absorbing 70%. On training, the findings revealed
that only 6% of teachers were trained to enable them to deliver lessons virtually. This,
therefore, shows that 94% of teachers were yet to receive any form of training on digital
literacy. These findings raise critical questions on the level of priority being accorded by the
MoE/GES regarding Ghana’s quest to build resilience in the education system in the short-
medium term against a resurgence of any future pandemic.
The National Digital Literacy Project and the Ghana National Knowledge and Skills
Bank
The Ghana National Knowledge and Skills Bank project is another intervention under the
Coordinated Education Response Plan to enable the curation of all educational content linked to
the new curriculum (including e-textbooks, interactive lessons, video lessons, and audio
content). It was further earmarked to allow for the aggregation of third-party educational
content through the GhLA and to provide curated and approved audio content accessible
through toll-free calls and USSD short codes playback. As a sub-component under the
Coordinated Education Response Plan, the project is expected to support capacity building for
CENDLOS and GhLA to adapt, curate, and develop learning content and teacher training
materials. After a year, this study set out to ascertain the gains made from this project by asking
what both teachers and students know about the project designed for them.
Unfortunately, the study revealed that almost all teachers and students interviewed had very
little or no knowledge of the National Digital Knowledge Project and Ghana National Knowledge
and Skill Bank Project. With 96% of teachers expressing that they had no idea what the National
Digital Knowledge Project and Ghana National Knowledge and Skill Bank Project meant, all
students in this study (100%) expressed the same. While the GhLA and CENDLOS were reached
by Eduwatch, they could not provide any feedback for this report after two months of waiting.
This finding underscores the need for stakeholder knowledge of ongoing interventions, especially
where the stakeholders are the primary beneficiary or end users of the service being delivered.
What is the stakeholder engagement strategy of Ghana’s COVID-19 Coordinated Education
Response Plan? What is the level of involvement of Teacher Unions and their members, School
Management Committees and Parent Teacher Associations?
Online and Offline (Toll-Free Helpdesk) Remote Assistance
As part of measures aimed at strengthening remote learning, the Coordinated Education
Response Plan included the setting up of an online and offline toll-free helpdesk for teachers and
students to access remote assistance. The study sought to ascertain whether students and
teachers knew about this hotline. On whether learners and teachers knew about and did use the
toll-free helpdesk for remote assistance, all teachers and students indicated otherwise, as they
were unaware. A review of the Edmodo LMS did not identify any such toll-free helpline. The only
way users accessed help was through a chat box and not a toll-free line.
Internet Accessibility in Schools
As part of the Coordinated Education Plan, the MOE and GES undertook to develop an
operational plan to expand internet connectivity to all public basic schools and to coordinate with
telecommunications companies to ensure zero-rate internet access to educational materials,
including access to the LMS and the Ghana National Knowledge and Skills Bank. The study
sought to ascertain whether the sampled public basic schools had access to the internet. Even
though there is internet coverage within the catchment area of majority of schools sampled,
90% of teachers indicated their schools had no access to the internet. This finding was not
different at the student level as all students revealed their schools had no access to the internet.
To some respondents, their schools did not even have electricity, so a conversation on the
internet was a non-starter for them. For others, even if the internet is provided, they had no
computers or Information Communication Technology (ICT) devices to access the internet.
“If it is Wi-Fi in the school, then ‘No’ we do not have that. We
don’t even have one computer in our school to talk about Wi-Fi”.
A teacher from Odoben Methodist Basic School, Agona Odoben,
Central Region.
At the national level, 40% of public basic schools are without electricity. This finding suggests
that for some public schools like Odoben Methodist, the provision of the internet will be
challenging until it is connected to the national grid or provided with renewable energy. In
contrast to the above finding, 10% of schools revealed they had access to personally acquired
Wi-Fi and not from government’s virtual learning intervention. These schools however
complained about the high cost of data making it difficult to use the internet as often as
required.
Teaching and Learning Materials
As part of measures aimed at meeting the needs of the over 500,000 students who did not have
access to television, radio, or other technologies to access virtual learning, the MoE and GES, as
part of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan proposed reaching them through
the printing and distribution of TLMs. It is for this reason that this project sought to find out
from teachers whether their schools received such printed TLMs. The chart below shows the
level of distribution of these TLMs among the sampled schools.
From figure 4, only 35% of schools revealed they had received some TLMs whiles 65% indicated
they did not receive any since schools reopened. Of the 35% that received the TLMs, only 18%
confirmed receiving some Science and Mathematics materials, 55% received some reading books
(Phonics reading books, workbooks, and storybooks), and 27% of schools claimed they received
teachers’ resource pack for the new JHS curriculum. This situation clearly shows the ineffective
deployment of TLMs to all schools ahead of and during the re-opening of schools.
Notwithstanding, the study also revealed the commendable roles played by some CSOs (e.g.,
Plan international and the Otumfour Foundation) in providing learning materials to schools such
as Owusu Sempa M.A JHS (Obuasi East, Ashanti Region), Odumasi M.A JHS (Obuasi East,
Ashanti Region) and Kpeve Torno Salvation Army (Kpeve Gboyeme, Volta Region) before and
during the reopening of schools. A respondent indicated that;
“We did not receive anything apart from the reading books
(book title: Cock Crow) the Otumfour foundation brought for
the learners before we reopened but that is all.”
(Owusu Sempa M.A JHS, Obuasi East, Ashanti Region)
This finding also reiterates the importance of CSOs in our education space and the need for
government to collaborate with these organizations and create spaces for them to participate in
a parallel process of tracking the GES’ TLMs distribution system to achieve effectiveness
Figure 4: Distribution of Teaching and Learning Materials
Source: Eduwatch (2021) COVID-19 Resilience Monitoring Field data
35%
65%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Received TLMs Did not Receive TLM
TLM distribution in schools.
Accessing Interactive Virtual Learning Interventions
The successful outcome of every intervention program is dependent on among others, the level
of accessibility of key beneficiaries. Access to all virtual learning interventions implemented as
part of the Coordinated Education Response Plan was dependent on the availability of digital
resources and infrastructure16. Generally, the study revealed the inability of Public Basic School
students and teachers to access interactive online virtual learning interventions deployed by the
MoE and GES under the Plan. This research sought to identify key challenges faced by both
teachers and students in accessing the virtual learning interventions and key recommendations
to mitigate these challenges.
The study revealed the lack of computers, laptops, tablets and internet were the primary
challenges teachers and students faced in their bid to access various virtual learning
interventions. All the students interviewed indicated they could not access interactive virtual
lessons because they did not have access to computers or tablets. These challenges were
neither regional nor district-specific, as all sampled schools reported the lack of ICT facilities.
Findings from the Colleges of Education
As with any other level of education in Ghana, the MoE as part of its COVID-19 Coordinated
Education Response Plan established remote learning intervention options for student teachers
to continue learning under the guidance of their tutors. Out of this came concerns about
teachers’ preparedness to teach with digital technologies. For this reason, the MoE proposed an
integration into the pre-service training curriculum, virtual learning support teaching whiles
ensuring that the over 32,000 student teachers with 1,500 teacher educators in 46 CoE continue
learning on virtual platforms to boost this experience while being equipped to instruct in same
when deployed as trained teachers. As part of monitoring the implementation of the COVID-19
Coordinated Education Response Plan, Eduwatch monitored college-level implementation in ten
CoE. Specifically, 30 tutors were interviewed.
Curriculum and Virtual Learning Integration
Before the school closures and subsequent shift to virtual learning by CoE, the Transforming
Teacher Training and Learning project (T-Tel) had already developed and rolled out a new
teacher training curriculum. Whiles this was done without much recourse to the demands of this
pandemic or future pandemics, the results of this study indicated that the impact of the school
closures had automatically necessitated an integration of virtual learning into tutors’ method of
teaching and the curriculum. This assertion was consistent with the responses of about 70% of
tutors sampled for this study. For these tutors, the push towards the integration of virtual
learning into curriculum and teaching methods was not a deliberate effort by the curriculum
developers but as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. For instance, a respondent stated that;
16 CDD, Africa Education Watch, and NorthernNetwork for Education Development, (2021)
“NO. There has not been such integration. However, at the
emergence of COVID-19, the College put in place some remote
learning methods to assist students and staff to engage
adequately, just like all other Colleges of Education did. Within
the period, the College encouraged the use of some Virtual
learning platforms, like Google Meet, Google Classroom,
WhatsApp, and Telegram”
(Damba College of Education, Dambai-Krachi East District, Oti
Region)
In contrast to the above finding, 30% of tutors revealed that Virtual Learning Systems and
Technologies (VLST) were already in use at a relatively minimal scale prior to the COVID-19
outbreak. Therefore, the later adoption of VSLT during COVID-19 was an upscaling of what was
already part of the teaching culture in some CoE.
Digitization of the Curriculum
One of the key deliverables of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan was the
digitizing of CoE curriculum. Digitizing the curriculum involved efforts to comprehensively collect
resources that align to teaching and learning standards and expectations onto a digital platform.
This usually came in the form of texts, videos, images, and other interactive media that enable
teachers to personalize the learning experiences of their students17. Digitizing the curriculum
made it accessible to students outside the classroom and in school. The study sought to verify
from respondents whether the CoE curriculum was digitized as part of the implementation of the
COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan.
Findings from this study showed that maximum efforts had been made to digitize the CoE
curriculum. All respondents confirmed that the CoE curriculum had been digitized and was
accessible online. The study further revealed that various universities in charge of the CoE
created e-learning platforms and e-libraries where curriculum-related content could be accessed
by both tutors and learners. The four regulating universities; University of Ghana (UG),
University of Development Studies (UDS), University of Cape Coast (UCC), and the University of
Education, Winneba (UEW) also proceeded to organize virtual training programs for teachers on
how they could access curriculum documents and related content online. One such tutor noted;
“The College shared the digital curriculum with students every
semester. There is strengthened digitization of the curriculum; it
is available on our LMS for access by students.”
(Foso College of Education, Foso-Assin Central Region)
17 Panworld Education, (2017)
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the world of teaching and learning in a very short period. CoE
tutors were now required to learn how to teach students online and in virtual classrooms.
Student Teachers were equally required to learn and adapt to this new development of online
learning and virtual classrooms. As part of measures under the COVID-19 Coordinated Education
Response Plan to strengthen the education sector resilience, pre-service teachers were expected
to be trained on how to facilitate remotely. It is for this reason that the study sought to find out
whether student teachers and tutors were provided such training.
About 60% of tutors indicated that student teachers had not been formally given any training.
Rather, the tutors were provided with such training during the closure of schools. A tutor noted
that;
“Student teachers have not been given any training on
facilitating Virtual Learning, and are just made to adopt the
preferred platform a tutor chooses to use for their lessons”
(EP College of Education– Amedjofe)
In contrast, 40% of tutors interviewed for this study, indicated that student teachers were taken
through some basic orientation on how to facilitate remote learning by their mother Universities
(UG, UCC, UDS, and UEW). In addition, tutors were also tasked to orient students on the use of
virtual learning technologies in their teaching. The variation in responses suggests that even
though at the training of CoE tutors, CoE were tasked to ensure their student teachers are
oriented in VLST, not all CoE’s may have complied.
Implementing the Virtual Learning Interventions
The implementation of every intervention comes with its attendant challenges, and the virtual
learning intervention implemented as part of the Coordinated Education Response Plan was no
exception at the CoE level. Critical among the challenges were unstable internet connectivity and
the high cost of internet data. The issue of network connectivity was a big issue as most
learners were either unable to join lessons from their locations or had difficulty hearing the tutor
because of the tutor’s internet connectivity. This situation did not only affect the learning
process but also limited some learners’ participation in online classes. One tutor indicated that;
“There is a huge challenge with the Network coverage. Most
students complain of not having good reception at their various
locations to join lessons.”
(Offinso College of Education, Offinso- Offinso)
The study also identifies challenges such as the lack of digital teaching and learning devices and
limited capacity of some instructors to use VLST to teach effectively.
Accountability
The implementation of the COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan has been occasioned
with no accountability channels for Civil Society or the citizenry. One year after implementation
of a close to US$15 million interventions, there is no formal report on implementation progress
published and available on any platform of the MoE or GES, neither is there any Value For
Money report available for review to ensure funds earmarked for the programme are being
applied judiciously. Major issues relating to participation, which are critical for programme
success and relevance, could have been addressed if there was a platform for regular
engagement with stakeholders on implementation progress.
While this closed-door approach to managing projects at the MoE is not new, it must be
discouraged to prevent post facto reviews which adds no value to already closed projects.
Development Partners have a key role to play in ensuring that as part of conditions for
committing funds, quarterly reviews with civil society, publishing of technical, financial and
procurement reports on the MoE ‘s website are entrenched as non-negotiable benchmarks in
project management. Without information through published implementation progress reports, it
would be difficult for any comprehensive Civil Society accountability advocacy to be undertaken
during project implementation. This applies to other projects currently being implemented,
especially GALOP.
Recommendations
Respondents outlined the following recommendations to improve the implementation of the
government’s COVID-19 Coordinated Education Response Plan:
a. MoE and Ministry of Communications should engage telecommunications companies to
streamline their operations, improve the quality of internet service and extend internet to
remote areas.
b. MoE should facilitate financial assistance for tutors to augment associated expenses
resulting from the use of VLST.
c. MoE should facilitate the provision of laptops to tutors in CoE to facilitate virtual learning.
d. MoE should facilitate the procurement of laptops for students through a hire-purchase
arrangement, using part of the allowances or student loans.
e. Management of CoE’s should provide regular training through orientations for students
and tutors on the use of VLST.
COVID-19 Health and Safety
a. The GES and Ghana Health Service must review their COVID-19 protocols enforcement
strategies in schools.
b. The GES, MoE and the Ministry of Health must develop a vaccination policy for its staff
and students.
Re-entry
a. GES should expand the BTS campaign to communities where private schools have
collapsed in rural, peri-urban and urban areas. This should be done in collaboration with
the Ghana National Council of Private Schools. Also, communities and districts not
covered must be included to gain a national reach.
Virtual Learning
a. The GES must provide virtual learning facilities in all public basic schools.
b. District Assemblies must develop and implement a plan to extend electricity to all public
basic schools in communities already connected to the national electricity grid. Moving
forward, all contracts for the construction of schools in areas already connected to the
national grid must strictly incorporate electricity connection.
c. The GES must initiate a nationwide training of all Public School teachers on the use of the
LMS and Knowledge Bank. In addition to the laptops being distributed, provision for
monthly internet allocations must be negotiated with the telecommunications sector and
disbursed to enable regular use of the LMS by teachers and students.
d. The GES must establish a monitoring system to track the distribution of pre-recorded
lessons and other learning materials to ensure all schools receive as dispatched.
e. The MoE and GES must coordinate and sequence all virtual learning activities to achieve
coherence and optimum impact.
f. The GES must engage parents through consultation to secure their buy-in to enhance
their support for their ward’s participation in the virtual learning space at home and in
school.
Back-To-School Pedagogy
a. The GES must ensure that all schools are provided with the necessary teaching and
learning resources, especially textbooks to facilitate quality teaching and learning.
b. The GES must establish a proper line of communication with school heads on curriculum-
related matters.
c. The GES must support teachers to effectively undertake remedial and accelerated
learning for poor-performing students.
Conclusion
Ghana has a deliberate plan and has made some significant gains in building pandemic resilient
systems in its education system through the introduction and upscaling of VLST in the education
sector. This is complemented with its BTS campaign, and health and safety programmes being
implemented to ensure safer schools and enhanced re-enrolment, after the reopening of schools
within COVID-19. However, there are gaps in the implementation process, ranging from lack of
knowledge and adequate participation by students, parents and teachers on the virtual learning
platforms, to issues of exclusion arising out of the lack of ICT gadgets in schools.
Teacher capacity to participate in virtual learning is still low, with many yet to receive any formal
training, despite an ongoing distribution of laptops for teachers. While the BTS campaign has
succeeded in enrolling some potential dropouts, there remain many communities with high
numbers of students yet to re-enrol, necessitating the expansion of the BTS campaign to all
districts and communities nationwide, especially communities where collapsed private schools
are located. The implementation of the US$15 million COVID-19 Coordinated Education
Response Plan has not been transparent. One year after implementation, and nearing its
completion, there is still limited knowledge about its activities even within the stakeholder
community, especially among teachers, while there is no published report on its implementation
progress and finances. A successful completion of the Plan will achieve the desired impact if
issues relating to participation, sequencing of activities, transparency, equity and accountability
are addressed.
Appendix 1: List of Schools Monitored
Volta Region
Anyiboboe M/A Basic School Tongor-Abui EP D/A Basic School
Kpeve Torno Salvation Army Adzokoe D/A JHS
Have Ando No. 2 Basic School Dzemeni R/C JHS
Anyako M/A Basic School Tsyokpokofe E.P/D. A Basic School
Peki Dzake E.P Primary C Kpando Ziavi MA Basic School
Kpando Anglican Basic School Tongor-Tsanakpe D/A Primary
Akuete D/A Basic School Ehi M/A Basic School
Have R/C Primary School
Central Region
Abura TI Ahmadia Basic School Saltpond Catholic Girls School
Odoben Methodist Basic School
Ashanti Region
Akrofuom Methodist Primary School New Nsuta M.A School
Tutuka Methodist School “A” Odumasi M.A JHS
Owusu Sempa M.A School JHS St. Joseph R/C Primary A School
St. Cyril’s Anglican School Boete Primary A School
Kwabrafosu D/A Primary School Obuasi School Complex JHS
Oti Region
Shehu Umaru Basic School
Upper West Region
St. Paul’s Methodist School
Northern Region
Kalandan SDA JHS, Ponag Girls JHS
Leprei JHS, Bimbila E/A Primary School
Makayili R/C JHS, Banvim Presby Primary School
Nuritahazeep T.I Ahamadia Primary/KG Lingbung Gurugu D/A JHS
Banvim Presby Primary School Amriya Islamic Primary School
St. James R/C JHS Tahiniya Islamic Primary School
Kalpohin Anglican JHS Kakpagyili Taskif Islamic JHS
Taddeen Islamic JHS Manhaliya Islamic JHS
Kakpagyili Taskif Islamic JHS
Colleges of Education
McCoy College of Education Foso College of Education
Mt. Mary College of Education Dambai College of Education
Peki College of Education Accra College of Education
Ola College of Education St. John Bosco College of Education
EP College of Education Offinso College of Education
Notes
Notes
Notes
