Teacher Training

Improving Education Standards in Sekyere

Children in Ashanti receive up to nine years education, but our tests showed that only one in five reached acceptable levels of reading and understanding.  In 2011, we asked  teacher-trainer Dave Banks, to look for inexpensive and easy-to-replicate ways of improving this situation.

After familiarising himself with local schools, Dave embarked on a course of participatory activities, based on what staff considered good practice.  He followed this with lesson planning exercises, repeat observations and feedback, with teachers working individually or in pairs and in this way taking ownership of the process.  The principal change was from ‘talk and chalk’ to a more participatory form of lesson, delivered at pace and with engagement and questioning.

Dave refined and strengthened the work until he retired in 2022.  By then, the project encompassed 1,200 teachers and 25,000 children, and Leavers’ exam results stood at 85.2 per cent.

Real Results

While we recognise that exam results are an imperfect way of measuring success, they do give some idea of how far we have come.

Expanding Our Impact

Sekyere Central Education Department decided the project should continue, even without Dave Banks, and nowadays it is run by their educational supervisors.  We are encouraging them to allow their supervisors to deliver the project to a nearby District, and are currently trying to raise the funds to allow the work to begin.

Help us Bring Quality Education to more Children

With your support, we can extend this vital project and fund the extension of this work to a whole new District.