An associate Professor at the Institute of Educational Planning and Administration of the University Cape Coast (UCC), Michael Amakyi, has expressed concern over inappropriate social media content by some youth and said teachers needed to do more to mould learners into good and civil individuals.
He said it was critical to salvage values that once made the nation a shining example that was held in high esteem by moulding learners’ characters that would make them live above their parochial interests.
Prof. Amakyi was speaking at a validation workshop on the global citizenship education teachers’ manual for Ghana in Cape Coast, Central Region.
The manual is aimed at guiding teachers to train learners as global citizens with values of care, respect, and dignity and to be each other’s keeper.
It was attended by about 50 school improvement support officers from the Greater Accra, Central, Western, Volta, Ashanti and Eastern regions.
The workshop was organised by the institute, in collaboration with the Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding (APCEIU), under the auspices of UNESCO.
Concerns
Prof. Amakyi further described some of the social media content by some children as shameful, adding that the craving for wealth at all costs, disrespect for the elderly and one another, including putting selfish interest above national interest should be a cause for worry for both parents and teachers.
He said it was obvious that the nation had lost its values and attributed some of the moral decadence to the behaviour of some elders and leaders who were exhibiting various acts of selfishness and greed in society.
Prof. Amakyi said it was important for the nation to retrace its steps of upholding societal values, emphasising that teachers had a critical role “to play in this journey”.
Values
The Director-General of the institute, Dr Michael Boakye-Yiadom, also said there was a need to translate the values taught in classrooms into everyday life.
He added that teachers must live exemplary lives to serve as role models for their pupils.
Dr Boakye-Yiadom further expressed optimism that the values of global citizenship would be properly integrated into the teaching curriculum.
Some of the participants also said institutional systems must support values that keep society peaceful, loving and safe.
