The Ghana Education Service (GES) has decided to roll out  of  Professional Learning Community (PLC) sessions across all Senior High Schools (SHSs) and Senior High Technical Schools (SHTSs) nationwide.

According to GES, the initiative is aimed at strengthening teachers’ comprehension and adherence to the National Teachers’ Standards (NTS) while preparing them for the introduction of the new secondary education curriculum to be rolled-out in the 2024/25 academic year.

In January 2022, the Service piloted the use of PLC weekly sessions in 12 SHSs and SHTSs in using structured handbooks developed in partnership with the National Teaching Council (NTC).

A recent evaluation by the GES, found that the weekly sessions had a significant impact on improving teaching and learning in these 12 schools, providing a strong evidence-base for the national scale-up of this approach.

Education Service (GES) has initiated plans for a national roll out of Professional Learning Community (PLC) sessions

To ensure the smooth institutionalisation of the PLC sessions across all schools, GES also organised a five-day training session for a 100-member National Training Team comprising representatives from GES, T-TEL, Senior High Schools, and Colleges of Education.

The training, which took place in Koforidua from Monday May 8 to Friday May 13 2023, focused on equipping the National Training Team with the necessary skills and resources to support teachers and officers across various regional and district education directorates to effectively implement PLCs in SHSs and SHTSs.

The sessions demonstrated how teachers can be supported and equipped with interactive and innovative approaches to make teaching and learning more engaging for students.

With a strong focus on leveraging technology and promoting Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI), the training also highlighted the importance of socio-emotional learning in the classroom.

All approaches used in the training were drawn from the National Teacher's Standards (NTS), which sets out the values and attitudes, knowledge, and practices expected of all professional teachers in Ghana.