New trends in physics teaching, v.4; The ... - unesdoc - Unesco

Teacher education: a case study
The Institute of Education, University of Cape Coast, reacted to the report of the committee
as well as to the NTTC comments making four points. The three-year ‘quasi-specialist’ course
should continue for a year while the new changes were being effected. The Institute did not wish
to involve itself with the three-year general course. The failure of the three-year ‘quasi-specialist’
programme was due to poorly conceived syllabuses. Finally they warned that the new course may
face the same problems of having no defined criteria on which to base the programme and no
orientation courses for teachers.
HOW FAR HAS THE PROGRAMME BEEN A SUCCESS?
A questionnaire sent out to the products of the three-year post-secondary and two-year specialist
courses of this college, Bagabaga Training College, revealed that most of them thought they were
well equipped with the right skills for science teaching and that the course had aroused in them
interest in scientific pursuits, increased their knowledge of science and made them committed
science teachers. A few confessed that there was too much to do and this rather confused them.
Most teachers thought themselves well equipped to teach science in elementary, junior secondary
and secondary schools. Their non-specialist colleagues see them mo’stly as hardworking, cooperative
and a real asset to the school, but the science organizers are seen as those who do
little but are paid more! While a few thought of them as well prepared, most felt that they were
only adequately prepared. Team teaching was agreed by all to be useful. All science teachers
are disappointed by the discontinuation of the course because they think science teachers are
needed in the elementary schools if the country is to progress in a scientific age. In spite of the
difficulties involved in getting local materials, most science teachers think that the idea of
improvisation learnt during the course has been an asset to them.
Another questionnaire to the headmasters of the junior secondary schools also gave useful
feedback. The teacher/pupil ratio in these schools ranges from 1 :50 to 1 :90. The science teachers
in these schools are generally assessed as being fairly competent and enthusiastic about science.
All the headmasters deplore the discontinuation of the course because they still need ‘middle
level science teachers’. One of them showed his preference for the two-year specialist teacher.
The number of teachers per school ranges between one and three.
The results of these questionnaires seem to suggest that both the two-year specdist and threeyear
‘quasi-specialist’ courses had achieved the objective of training science teachers to teach in
the elementary and junior secondary schools and also to produce science organizers. Educationally,
the courses have been a success. The lack of funds to provide the essential resources appears
to have been less of a handicap to the colleges than the weaknesses in the course planning. But
there were indications that it was more difficult for colleges remote from the administrative
centre to provide satisfactory conditions for their courses than for colleges closer in.
The existing teacher/pupil ratios indicate that more specialist teachers are needed right now.
Is the solution to the problems of the programme to reduce the output of teachers, thus reducing
the number of colleges, or rather to scrap the programme completely? This seems to be the issue
at stake.
DISCUSSION
The Ghana experience as described above can provide ideas about mounting a programme for
training science teachers for a new education system. The following points seem to emerge:
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