750 science teachers trained on effective use of modern equipment

Seven hundred and fifty (750) science teachers and laboratory technicians from 174 senior high schools across the country have been trained on the effective use of modern laboratory equipment.

This is to build their capacities for the effective use of the science equipment, procured by the Ministry of Education for science resource centres of the beneficiary schools.

The training, which is part of efforts by the Ministry and the Ghana Education Service (GES) to improve the study of science in schools, is being conducted by the Omega Compu Engineering Systems.

Beneficiary schools were zoned into cluster of regions with the last batch being the Ashanti and Western North regions, and the 242 participants the two regions are currently undergoing the training at the Opoku Ware Senior High School (OWASS) in Kumasi and are expected to train other colleagues who could not be part.

The goal of the programme is to move away from the abstract teaching of science subjects where students were taught only theories without having a feel of the equipment.

It is for that reason that the Ministry has procured all the relevant apparatus for physics, chemistry and biology laboratories to ensure practical demonstration by students.

Most of the participants, who spoke to the Ghana News Agency (GNA), were excited about the exercise, which, they said, would change the face of teaching science in their various schools.

They said it was their first time of seeing most of the equipment despite teaching for many years adding that it was a laudable intervention by the Ministry and its partners.

Madam Ama Gyamfua, a Science Teacher at the Obuasi Senior High School, told the GNA that teaching students without practical demonstration had been a major challenge.

She said with the availability of the equipment, teaching her students would be very interesting because she could now demonstrate the practical aspect to them without difficulty.

“I have been teaching physics for some time now but most of these equipment are not at our disposal and it makes teaching more theoretical but now I can easily expose my students to the practical aspect of the course,” she said.

Mr Paul Attakorah, a facilitator, said there was a huge gap for teaching science without the needed equipment to demonstrate what was being taught.

“Science is such that you cannot teach through imagination, so it is important for students to have physical contact with what the teacher is talking about to bring out the meaning,” he said.

Mrs Olivia Serwaa Opare, the Director of Science Education Unit, GES, said the modern equipment would make certain concepts in science easier to teach.

She encouraged the participants to transfer the knowledge to their colleagues to improve teaching and learning of the subject.

She commended the Ministry and the GES for the laudable initiate to resource laboratories of senior high schools, which for many years lacked basic equipment to facilitate the study of science