By: Nana Kwame Bediako
The GA West Municipal Director of Education, Mr. Victor Noye Tawaih, has made a compelling case as he emphasized on encouraging young girls to pursue ICT studies.
Speaking at a recent event organized by the GA West Municipal Education Directorate, in collaboration with MNUN-West Africa, Mr. Tawiah highlighted the critical role technology plays in modern education and the importance of closing the gender gap in ICT participation.
“From where we stand as a country, we are beginning to see an improvement in the penetration of technology in the teaching and learning process. We believe the empowerment of girls in ICT will go a long way to ensure that we leverage the number of girls in the country against their participation in ICT because the gap is quite wide,” Mr. Tawiah said.
Mr. Tawaih elaborated on the disparity between male and female participation in ICT, emphasising that future efforts must focus on equipping schools with adequate facilities.
“One sure way is to ensure that we have a lot more ICT facilities in our schools. We entreat the government and all stakeholders interested in developing education to ensure that we properly equip our ICT labs,” he advocated.
Addressing the issue of inadequate resources, Mr. Tawiah stressed the importance of properly outfitting ICT labs with the necessary materials and logistics. He added that when the buildings are there without the requisite tools to study, it remains dormant.
“If you have an ICT lab that is almost empty, you can’t teach the subject. We’re encouraging as many people as possible to support us in building and equipping ICT facilities,” he urged. This initiative is seen as a cornerstone for successfully integrating technology into education.
In addition to his focus on ICT, Mr. Tawiah also highlighted the significance of reading in the educational development of young learners. He introduced the theme of the reading festival: “Learn to read, read to learn, read to explore.”
According to Mr. Tawiah, reading skills are fundamental for students to thrive in the 21st century. “If you can’t read, you can’t understand whatever is going on in your world, so reading forms a basis for our learners to acquire knowledge and understand their immediate environment,” he explained.
The reading festival, organised for the first time in two years, aims to showcase the reading talents of early graders and inspire others to develop a love for reading.
“The essence of this activity is not only to help learners display their talents and skills in reading but also to encourage those who may not be interested. By seeing what their peers are doing, they will be encouraged to demonstrate and express an interest in reading”.
