Lessons in the class of Osuanyi Quaicoo Essel,
in which students practise the role of teachers.
The University of Education in Winneba (UEW) was recommended to us as a partner for our project in Ghana – since our visit at the beginning of the year, we know even better why.
The university was founded in 1992 and is now the largest university in West Africa with 50,000 students. Or rather: the largest university association with a total of seven institutions. These include the Advanced Teacher Training College, the Specialist Training College and the National Academy of Music – all three based in Winneba. There is also the School of Ghana Languages in Ajumako, the Advanced Technical Training College in Kumasi, the College of Special Education in Akwapim-Mampong and the St Andrews Agricultural Training College in Asante-Mampong.
In each case, the focus is on training teachers who will be able to teach at primary schools, secondary schools or extracurricular educational institutions after completing their studies. However, the university not only aims to train excellent teachers, but also to prepare its students for life in the best possible way. Unemployment among university graduates is one of the country’s most pressing political and social problems, and the lack of opportunities increases young people’s dissatisfaction and their willingness to emigrate.
In this respect, the university’s core values include not only academic excellence but also a positive work ethic, teamwork and partnership development, sustainable money management, good corporate governance, gender equality, social inclusion, service to the community and responsibility for the environment.
Not all students will be able to work as teachers after graduation.
This makes it all the more important to strengthen their independence.
In discussions with Vice President Jobson Mitchual, Dean Emmanuel Osei Sarpong, our direct contact Osuanyi Quaicoo Essel and students from the Fashion and Textile Education department, we quickly realised how little we needed to explain ourselves and our project. We were immediately on the same page and went from talking to doing.