The Member of Parliament for the Builsa South constituency, Dr. Clement Apaak, says the National Democratic Congress’ decision to cancel the teacher licensure exam should the party emerge victorious in the 2024 polls remains unchanged.
The decision of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to cancel teacher licensure exams has been met with mixed feelings among the professionals in the teaching fraternity.
The NDC believes that the cancellation of teacher licensure exams is necessary, and the merging of the said examination into the teacher education curriculum is the best way to go so that a teacher who completes the College of Education will have attained professional teacher status.
This comes after the National Teachers Council (NTC) revealed that it had rescinded its decision not to allow teachers who failed to re-sit the examination.
The cancellation of teacher licensure exams by the NDC popped up again after the NTC announced it would permit teachers who failed the last exam to re-sit the failed papers in March 2024.
According to the NTC, over 8,000 teachers who failed the examination held in the last quarter of 2023 can re-sit the examination.
The new date for the first examination in 2024 is scheduled for March 2024. However, the NTC has yet to indicate the exact date for the examination as well as the timetable to be used. The fees for re-sit as well as those of first-time candidates are yet to be made public for the March 2024 teacher licensure exam.
According to him, the NDC is of the view that the exam can’t be used as the optimal method for qualifying teachers for recruitment, hence the position.
READ: Teachers who failed Licensure Exams to retake exam – NTC
Mr. Apaak’s comments follow the National Teaching Council’s decision to offer a second chance to trainees who did not pass the 2023 Teacher Licensure Exams to retake the test.
The NTC has set March 2024 for the over 8,000 teachers who fell below the required threshold to retake the exams.
During a Citi News interview, Dr. Apaak, who is also the Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament, affirmed that the exams will be abolished if the NDC comes into power.
“Our position has not changed as far as cancelling the licensure exams is concerned. We don’t believe it is the best option in terms of licencing teachers. It is not by writing an exam, and so the deficiencies ought to be looked at within the proven processes, and the licencing process must also take place within the training period that the young teachers are still in school and not after.”
Out of over 20,000 teachers who participated in the exams in 2023, 8,000 did not meet the required threshold.
READ: 2024 GES Recruitment Portal Open Date Out
Dr. Christian Addea Poku, the Registrar of the National Teaching Council, stated in an interview with Citi News on Monday that the Council is committed to ensuring failed trainees retake the exam in March 2024.