The National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) has called on political parties to go beyond promises and prioritise the welfare of teachers in their education policies.
NAGRAT argues that successive governments have focused on benefiting students at the expense of teachers, leading to demotivation and poor working conditions.
According to NAGRAT, issues such as lack of accommodation for teachers in rural areas, delayed payment of allowances, and inadequate facilities for teaching and learning remain unaddressed.
The association’s Ashanti Regional Secretary, Atindana Baba Joseph, expressed frustration that political parties’ policies always focus on students, neglecting the teachers who implement them.
NAGRAT wants political parties to make teachers the central element in enhancing education, with improved welfare packages, housing policies, and facilities.
They also want the Free SHS policy improved, not cancelled, saying, “For political parties, we have heard what he promised and what makes us so angry is that always the policies are geared towards the students. How to make the students something, not the ones who are going to implement those policies, that has been our worry.
“For example, we were given TM1, laptops, that the memory gig is just 2.5, whereas those for the students, the memory gig is higher.”
“So, what we are saying, we have heard both parties, we have heard both parties and what they said, but what we are saying is that make the teacher the pivotal element in promoting and enhancing education.
“Our land and housing policy, we want to see it up. Any other facility that will enhance the teacher, we want the curricula, we want it to be fastened. The Free SHS, we want it at least to be improved.”
“We are not interested in their new definition of improved mean cancellation; we are not interested in that. We are born to teach, whoever comes to power, we will teach. However, if you come and enhance our welfare, the package, that makes us more interested in the teaching and every teacher motivated will teach you to the best of his ability and the vice versa is true.”
Registrar of the National Teaching Council, Dr. Christian Addai-Poku speaking during the launch of NAGRAT’s 25th Anniversary Celebrations in Kumasi defended the introduction of the Teacher Licensure Examination.
He called on politicians to engage with technocrats for a better understanding of such educational policies.
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