Shift to holistic education - Rev. Prof. Asare-Danso advocates knowledge, skills, moral values

A Professor of Religious and Moral Education at the Department of Arts Education at the University of Cape Coast, Rev. Prof. Seth Asare-Danso, says it is disheartening that the current education system focuses on knowledge and skills acquisition at the expense of moral values. 

He said while the original concept of education, especially as conceived by mission schools, was to develop a holistic individual, the current system was largely targeted at passing examinations. 

Shift

"Education is now focused on knowledge and skills, without taking into account moral values and that is why we have corrupt accountants, environmental degradation and a general lack of commitment to work for the collective good," he said.

Rev. Prof. Asare-Danso said this at the Graphic National Development Series (GNDS) in Accra yesterday.

The event, held at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), was on the theme: “A critical look at education and culture in Ghana to chart a course of national development, peace and our collective prosperity”

The GNDS is a thought leadership platform that Graphic Communications Group Ltd (GCGL) has created, particularly for this election year 2024, to look at pertinent areas of livelihood as a nation and have conversations around them.

Present at the programme were the United States Ambassador to Ghana, Virginia E. Palmer, educationists, representatives of civil society organisations and other personalities.
Rev. Prof. Asare-Danso commended the government for making efforts to introduce a new curriculum that sought to bridge the gap between knowledge or skills and moral values. 

TVET system

Prof. Asare-Danso, who is also the Chairman of the Akyem Abuakwa Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, stressed the need for stakeholders to work together for the effective implementation of the new curriculum as that would ensure that children had all the domains of human capital development.

Responding to a question on technical and vocational education and training (TVET) awareness, he stressed the need for the conscientisation of the public to accept TVET.

The conscientisation, he said, should be a collective responsibility and indicated that persons who had gone through the TVET system successfully could be used as resource persons and role models.

"We have role models in TVET and they have been able to make it in life. Such people should be used as resource persons to share their success stories."In our educational institutions, we can invite such people to come and talk to the students about TVET and the kind of opportunities that it offers them," Rev. Asare-Danso said.

That, he said, would challenge the students more to pursue their interest in TVET.

Again, he said the issue was also cultural and he believed that if people had been able to go through and were successful, it would certainly encourage others, especially parents, to send their children to TVET institutions.