A child-focused organization, Child Online Africa (COA) is asking government to place teachers at the heart of Education Recovery to restore quality education in the country.

The organization says it sees this year’s edition themed; ‘Teachers at the Heart of Education Recovery’ as an appropriate reminder of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic stemming from prolonged nationwide shutdown of educational facilities, causing disruptions in academic activities, hereby posing a risk to the holistic formation of children especially those in Ghana and Africa at large.

Executive Director of Child Online Africa, Awo Aidam Amenya, says when classroom learning resumed in the heat of the pandemic, teachers ensured that COVID-19 protocols are adhered to for safe learning environment.

She argues teachers were the first port of call when some learners showed symptoms of the virus infection.

She stated, “We see Education at the crossroads now where teachers should not be immersed in old-fashioned preparation programs that equip them to deliver primarily traditional stand-alone, text-based instruction in self-contained classrooms.”

The situation in the country’s schools, she says calls for a concerted effort at bringing education back to life and the need to develop sustainable strategies which will aid countries around the world including countries in Africa to wiggle out of the conundrum in order to build back better.

Mrs. Amenya says, even though the UNESCO/ILO recommendation concerning the status of teachers do not make Specific reference to Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Open and Distance Learning (ODL) or globalization, the Recommendations broadly address issues relating to these (access to modern teaching, research and information resources, teaching methods, international exchange of information).

“We urge governments to pursue a collaboration with Civil society and other stakeholders in policy formation to expedite the Educational recovery Process,” she stated.

Child Online Africa is also calling for an upscale of Information technology in schools and other Educational facilities to improve the efficacy of teaching and learning in these trying times while emphasizing the need for more skills training and equipment of teachers to be conversant with the deployment of technological devices in their daily activities of teaching and learning.