COTVET holds workshop for technical, vocational teachers

The Council for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (COTVET), in collaboration with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), has organized the first in a series of capacity building workshops, for lecturers of various technical and vocational institutions in the country.

According to the Executive Director of COTVET, Mr. Dan Baffour-Awuah, “the workshop is part of a series of programmes, designed to ensure that training providers in the technical and vocational sector are given the necessary support, to make the Competence Based Training (CBT) roll-out a success”.

The objective of the workshop was to evaluate the capacity of technical and vocational institutions in the country to efficiently run courses, using the Competency Based Training (CBT) method.  The CBT mode of teaching and learning is a relatively new concept, characterized by smaller class sizes, close linkage between training institutions and industry, as well as an emphasis on practical learning methods.

The workshop which was held at the Hephzibah Christian Centre in Aburi, was attended by 20 participants from the National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI), Accra Polytechnic, the College of Technology at the University of Education in Winneba, Technical Examinations Unit of the Ghana Education Service, National Board of Polytechnic Examinations (NABPTEX), and the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Division of the Ghana Education Service.

Mr. Michael Tsorgali, one of the participants, and a lecturer at the University of Education, Winneba, said that “this workshop is revealing to us some of the shortcomings in how we have been teaching and exposed us to more modern and effective methods.”

By Pascal Kelvin Kudiabor