Independent Study Paper

I.   Background and Analysis

Country Specific

Key Points:

–       Ghana’s political history directly effected their education

–       Economically, Ghana is doing better but still struggles with inflation

–       Education in Ghana is dysfunctional now, but this hasn’t always been the case

 

Ghana became an independent country in 1957, making it the first in Sub-Saharan Africa to do so, but Ghana’s history began well before it gained its independence.  The Portuguese were the first to discover that Ghana existed in the 15^th century and they built a fortress in 1482 to claim the area, but explorers from various European nations did not fail to explore Ghana closely behind the Portuguese (“Historical Background”, date unknown).  Once Europeans discovered that gold was being exported from Ghana’s coast, it was widely known as the Gold Coast for a large part of the following centuries.  During the peak of the slave trade in the 18^th century, its native residents and also British and Dutch merchants occupied Ghana.  As the British Empire grew stronger, mainly through the slave trade, but also through the exportation of gold, the Dutch were forced out and the British government proclaimed the coastal areas of Ghana under British rule (“Historical Background”, date unknown).  The British ruled from then up until Dr. Kwame Nkrumah broke away from the political party of the British, in 1947, and ran with the slogan “Self-Government Now”.  In 1951 the party was able to obtain self-government, becoming the first colony in Africa to do so successfully and in 1960 it became its own republic with Dr. Kwame Nkrumah as the President.

Prior to obtaining independence Ghanaians were primarily educated by the missionaries on the coast.  The spread of these schools and their teaching greatly influenced the nation, which can still be seen today with Christianity accounting for more than 71% of the nation.  The goals of these mission schools were not focused on the spread of literacy and language, so despite the speed of which these schools spread, little education was truly received. The First Education Ordinance was issued in 1852 and the Accelerated Development Plan in 1920 (Eyah, 2004).  These were two main steps by government officials to implement a change in the way education was approached.  This sense of urgency and mandatory education policies caused a huge rise in child attendance in school and greatly impacted the community.  Once Ghana had obtained its independence, education was still a top priority for the government.  Under Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, free basic education became required, along with free textbooks, and also the requirement of government officials who were to control the upkeep of the school’s building became mandatory. In 1966 all of this changed when the government was overthrown by military revolution.  The new government, absent of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, left education in a disarray mainly due to poor management, corruption and political havoc (Eyah, 2004). Since this time, many reforms have been implemented, none proving to be successful or last long.  The educational system in Ghana is still currently extremely dysfunctional.

Economically, the history of Ghana shows that they have both struggled greatly and was prosperous at various points in time. The production of coca in Ghana gained popularity in the late 19^th century, and by the 1920s, Ghana was the leading producer of coca in the world.  By the time Ghana had obtained its independence, the prosperous time of this country was coming to an end that was not foreseen.  Although the nation was successful in exporting coca, the extreme drop in the demand for coca caught the country by surprise at a terrible time.  The new President had counted on the coca revenue when he took out loans to pay for the incorporation of the start of an industrial economy to mix with his primarily agriculture one (“Historical Background”, unknown date).  While this idea was ambitious and could have helped jump start the Ghanaian economy tremendously, its failure cost Ghana greatly and from then on they have been stuck in a cycle of deep debt. By devaluing their currency, the government hoped that their coca would have an appealing price worldwide, but this backfired by landing them with an inflation rate of almost 9% (“Historical Background”, unknown date). While their inflation rate is rather high, currently, the Ghanaian government is economically doing much better than the other Sub-Saharan countries, and continues to do better each year.

Service Specific

Key points:

–       Ghanaians educational system is free, but there are strings attached

–       Children are being taken out of school for child labor

–       The lack of a stable supply of teachers is threating quality education

 

One of the main components of Ghana’s education system that made it stand out, in positive ways, was the fact that it was free education provided by the government.  Unfortunately, for the majority of families living in rural conditions, 48.3% in 2011 according to the World Bank Staff (2011), this free education has a price.  Ghanaian parents have quoted the indirect cost of schooling as the number one reason why their children are not attending school regularly. While none of the schools ask parents to pay an upfront cost for entry into the school, fees such as uniforms, rulers, math sets, and other school necessitates come at a price (Akyeampong et al., 2007, p. 60).  The sheer commute to school can often times cost to much year-round to allow a child to attend on a regular basis, so parents are forced to make the decision to keep their children at home where they can use them for household chores or labor.

There have been many studies that show the correlation between child labor and student attendance.  Various factors such as the type of work, educational opportunities available, age, and even gender contribute to the chances of children’s attendance in school.  These factors also affect the chances that a child may both go to work and school to provide financial support for themselves and/or siblings to continue to attend school. One particular study found that the conflict between child labor and their access to schooling significantly increased as the child grew older (Akyeampong et al., 2007, p. 62).  Due to the multiple factors, it has become increasingly difficult to help these families with these decisions since they depend on so many things.

Another major problem that is directly affecting the educational system in Ghana is the lack of reliable and consistent teachers.  In 2002, the President’s Committee on the Review of the Education Reforms stated that 5% of primary schools in Ghana had one or no teacher at all (Akyeampong et al., 2007, p. 63).  Many reports show that the quality teachers are refusing placement in rural areas, and if they are placed there they quickly seek transfer or the quit showing up to school all together. This isn’t to say that the Ghanaian teachers are refusing placement for selfish reasons, many of the complaints that quality teachers have teaching in the rural school is that besides the down-right awful conditions of the school, there are many health concerns that put the teachers at risk while working, such as the lack of drinkable water.  Nonetheless, absenteeism is a major problem for obvious reasons.  The rural areas boast the highest student to teacher ratios, and this often time discourages teachers from showing up to work (Akyeampong et al., 2007, p. 65).  The lack of morale that many teachers experience is one that has affected many teachers in the country and it is an issue that Ghana is scrambling to solve.

Source (peacefmonline.com) Image of students listening to Bible on tape in Ghana

II. Breaking News

“1.4 Million Children Don’t Go to School in Ghana”

This article is detailing a report that was issued by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, which had the data for the number of out-of school children across the world.  The results were shocking and 6 out of the top 12 countries were in Africa.  Ghana placed 7^th with 1.357 million out-of-school children on the global list.  In 2000, the EFA issued target millennium goals that said all children should be enrolled and reach gender equality by 2015.  While primary education enrollment has continued to increase, it is not expected that every child will be enrolled by 2015.

This article provides numbers to the shocking reality in our world. Millions of children do not attend school in economically struggling countries, which is not hopeful to the future of those countries.  Education is a key component to the building of a country and nation.  Hopefully the goals that the EFA can be reached in the next decade, and I believe that Ghanaians will be able to get their numbers down as well because they have consistently been improving. While in country I will have the chance to meet with grass roots organizations and see first hand how they are combating these issues.

“High Rate of Teacher Absenteeism in Volta Region”

This article details the unfortunate high rates of absenteeism amongst teachers in the Volta Region.  In 2013, this region broadcasted that “49 percent of male teachers and 48 percent of female teachers were absent from school” that year for reasons that were insignificant. These awfully high numbers contributed to the poor academic performances by the students in the area.  The article stated, “76 percent of children in the region could not read or understand the Ewe language” and that “86 percent could not read or understand the English language” which is the nation’s official language.  The Acting Director of Planning at the Volta Regional Education Directorate released a statement that asking teachers to “wake up”.

This article is related to the main social issue that peaked my interest for volunteering in Ghana: education.  The absenteeism of teachers in this region stem from a variety of reasons, one method that Cross Cultural Solutions is using to help relieve this issue is providing schools with the international volunteers, although this does not solve all problems because the volunteers can not teach Ewe and sometimes only stay as long as one week.  This article is helped me remember why I am going to Ghana, and although I will only be there a week, hopefully I can utilize my time wisely and help the children with the education that they need.

“Ghana Tourism Authority Declare 2014 Year of Tourism”

This article details the plans to increase tourism by the Ghana Tourism Authority for the year of 2014.  One of their biggest ideas includes capitalizing on the fact that Ghana’s capital is on the Centre of the Earth. Their idea is to build a “Meridian Wall of Fame” that international and domestic tourist will pay to have their names written on the monument lying on the Centre of the Earth.  Along with the addition and improvements of other attractions, Ghana has high hopes to increase the country’s tourism revenues and it is looked to surpass gold, coca and petroleum as the premium foreign exchange earner in the coming years.

This article was shocking to me because I did not think of Ghana as a country where tourism brings in close to $2.5 billion dollars.  The fact that tourist are traveling to Ghana to sightsee and explore somehow eases my mind about traveling there for the first time.  African countries are often time portrayed by Western society as a scary, barren and poor land, but the riches of Ghana are often times over looked and this article made me realize that Ghana is the complete opposite of that and I am now even more excited to see the country.

“Ghana Inflation Rate Rises to Highest This Year on Weak Cedi”
This article highlights the fact that the Ghanaian currency, cedi, is extremely weak.  As of October of last year, the inflation rate had risen from 11.5 percent to 11.9 percent since last August.  According to an asset management official, the rise in fuel prices had a great deal to do with the inflation rising.  Governor Kofi Wampah addressed the issue in September of last year and declared that he believes the inflation rate will “return to within the bank’s target of 9 percent… by the second half of next year”.

When traveling in Ghana, I will be using cedi currency in exchange for American dollars.  This article not only reminded me of this, but also opened my eyes to the economic issues that this country is facing. One effect of a high inflation rate is the over pricing of goods and/or services that were once offered for a lower price.  This happens because inflation causes a decline in the value of money, so it takes much more to now purchase the same things.  While in Ghana I plan to visit market places to pick up various goods to take back to the US, so with this in mind, I will understand why I may be spending a little more than normal.

III. Local Faculty

I intended to speak with Professor Shanicca Joshua.  She is a faculty member who is involved in the teaching program here on campus and she teaches an introductory course into special education. Professor Joshua also a leader nationwide in the area of hospital schooling.  Her career is focused with the education with children with special needs, particularly children diagnosed with cancer.

Unfortunately, I was not able to get a message back from her, but hopefully she can get back with me soon and I can talk with her!

IV. Reflection

While the specific choosing of Ghana was in many ways random for me, once I read the mission statement of Cross Cultural Solutions for this region, I immediately wanted to take part in it for its involvement in Deaf education.  This sparked my interest because I took three years of sign language in high school and I am still constantly utilizing it, and I love getting the chance to communicate with people who I otherwise wouldn’t have been able to effectively speak with if I didn’t have my knowledge in sign language.  Upon learning about the problems that Ghana is currently facing concerning absenteeism and the issues with their education system, I was moved to apply for the RDWSS.  Ghana is important to me because being of African decent, I think visiting the country that my own ancestors might have very well came from, through the Atlantic Slave Trade, will be an extremely humbling experience.

When discussing with my parents about this project and my future goals, my dad acknowledged something that I failed to notice in my 19 years of life! Almost all of the women in my family are teachers, and not only do they teach, they have also made a point to teach in under privileged areas in hopes of making a difference which is essentially what I want to do with my life.  When I began to think about how I am continuing down that path in our family, I began to realize that I have a purpose while I am here that is bigger than myself.  The women in my family have laid the foundation and I believe that I have the opportunity to expand on their hopes and dreams and turn them into realities.  I have been blessed with the opportunity to attend this amazing school and receive scholarships that my parents and grandparents never even dreamed about.  Every service trip and volunteer opportunity that I will come across from here on out is both a blessing and a lesson in my perspective.  I personally believe that this trip to Ghana will open my heart and mind to ideas and concepts that will help change the course of lives one day.  This is what fuels me and drives me to give everything that I have to the mission of this trip.  My passion for special education is a blessing and I hope to utilize my energy in the most constructive ways possible.

This leads me to the topic that I was not able to cover in depth in this project: special education.  I was not able to analyze the treatment and schooling of those enrolled in special education classes in Ghana due to the fact that many of the statistics given by government programs were concerning the broad spectrum of education, without focus in special education.  Special education is a topic that hasn’t been heavily researched in Ghana, but I would be interested in exploring this topic more due to my interest and heart for special education.  One article that I was able to find stated that less than 1% of children from the ages of 4 to 16 have access to a school that can accompany their disability in rural communities (Akyeampong, 2007, p.52).  Urban communities have much more access to schools for those with disabilities at 44%. One problem is that many teachers have little to no training in detecting students with disabilities so many of these students go unnoticed or simply drop out.  The Ghanaian government is aware of these statistics and they are attempting to make changes to change this issue.  One proposal is that the teaching of teachers on how to identify these disabilities would be placed in the teaching curriculum for aspiring teachers, which would be a step in the right direction for these children who are too often disregarded.

Source: (ghanaweb.com) School children celebrating 50th anniversary of Ghana’s independence