The Ghanaian National Association of the Deaf (GNAD) has called on the Ministry of Education, through the Ghana Education Service, to provide deaf learners with a deaf-friendly curriculum.

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In an interview with the media, President of GNAD, Mr Matthew Kubacha, said deaf students needed a curriculum that was favourable and responded to their needs.

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According to Mr. Kubacha, using non-deaf friendly curriculum for deaf learners has disastrous consequences for their education and examinations.

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Mr Kunacha highlighted inequalities in the current curriculum, citing parts of the system that require learners to understand specific sounds in order to aid learning and comprehension.

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“How do you expect deaf students to write the same examinations as the hearing when certain parts of the curriculum demand that a person must understand certain aspects of speech?” He asked.

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The President attributed the challenge to the belief that sign language is under-recognized in the country and thus does not receive adequate attention in all areas of policymaking.

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Mr Kubacha observed that, while many trained deaf graduates from universities and colleges were not assigned to teach deaf children, some teachers assigned to deaf schools struggled to master Sign Language.

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Where teachers lacked understanding of Ghanaian Sign Language, they were unable to effectively communicate course and curriculum content to deaf students, according to the GNAD President.

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He stated that some deaf people were unemployed because society had perceived them to be incapable, and employers were hesitant to hire them due to doubts about their capabilities.

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Mr Kubacha said it was worrying to observe that the deaf were excluded from family and social engagements, as well as government policies.

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“Our families and communities do not involve us in meetings and activities because they think that since we cannot hear, we cannot do anything,” Mr Kubacha said.

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The President appealed to public institutions to include them in the design and sharing of information to make their lives easy.

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The International Day of Sign Languages, commemorated globally on September 23 every year, is to raise awareness of the importance of sign language for the full realization of the human rights of deaf people.

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This year’s celebration is on the theme: “Sign Languages Unite Us.”

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Source: The Independent Ghana

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