The Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation’s Character Education programme, a transformative educational initiative designed to instil essential character values in students and young people, has achieved nationwide coverage with its recent expansion into the country’s five Northern Regions.
This significant milestone was achieved following a recent three-day intensive character education training seminar held in Accra for educators from selected schools in the five Northern Regions.
Since its inception in 2019, the foundation has worked tirelessly on achieving its vision of piloting character education in a hundred (100) partner schools across all sixteen (16) Regions of Ghana.
This year, a total of about 70 educators drawn from about 20 schools and other institutions benefited from the character education training programme.
In his welcome address, Sheriff Arthur-Daniels, the Executive Director of the Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation (KATF), highlighted the programme’s core objective to cultivate essential values critical for ethical citizenship and leadership in Ghana and Africa.
This involves nurturing essential values such as respect, responsibility, honesty, etc, in learners at both basic and Senior High School levels.
He further underscored the programme’s noticeable success, noting the significantly positive impact of the character education programme on students’ behaviour in partner schools.
Speaking at the commencement of the programme was also Stephen Kweku Owusu, a Director at the Office of the Technical Advisor of the Ministry of Education, as a special guest at the training seminar.
Owusu attended on behalf of Professor Oduro, the Technical Advisor to the Minister of Education, to gain firsthand insight into the Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation’s Character Education Program.
Owusu highlighted the three pillars of education: the mind (knowledge), the hands (skills), and the heart (values).
He stressed the importance of intentionally cultivating strong values in students alongside academic and technical training, emphasising its critical role in national development.
Owusu also encouraged participants to maximise the training’s benefits and apply the lessons within their schools and communities.
He commended the Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation for its impactful work in character education and urged schools to embrace the initiative as a vital complement to the traditional school curriculum.
The training was delivered by Kent Fahrenbruck, a seasoned consultant with Strata Leadership (USA) with decades of experience in leading Character Education sessions around the world.
The training was very insightful and delved into several topics, including character and competence, developing good character, changing the culture of schools, character-based corrections, among others.
Fahrenbruck emphasised the need for schools and educators to be intentional in building a school culture which thrives on character development of both the staff and students.
He shared that good character is the foundation upon which all other activities are built.
There was also an interesting panel discussion, which featured experienced personalities and educators on the topic “Character Education: The Key toAddressing Indiscipline and Fostering Positive School Culture”
The panellists emphasised the rising indiscipline among the youths in the country as a major cause of concern to everyone in the country.
They explored some of the root causes of this indiscipline and measures to address them. Additionally, Educators from Mfantsiman Girls SHS (Saltpond) and Gracious Future Academy (Amasaman), who are current partner schools of the Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation’s character education initiative, also shared their inspiring journey on the programme with the participants.
Madam Golda Esi Andam, the current Headmistress of Swedru Senior High School (Agona Swedru), who also participated in the programme, called on schools to be intentional in building character in their learners, especially teenagers.
She expressed her commendation to the Foundation for taking up the charge in character building and called on the need for a nationwide character education programme.
Many of the participants expressed their appreciation to the Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation for taking the leading steps in character education in Ghana.
They reaffirmed their commitment to ensure that the programme is implemented successfully in their respective schools to yield the needed impact.
The Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation’s commitment to providing character education training to educators in Ghana is a laudable endeavour with promising national benefits.
By empowering educators to incorporate character education into their teaching practices, the foundation is sowing the seeds for positive societal change.
Through this initiative, the foundation is not only shaping the future of Ghana but also laying the groundwork for more compassionate, ethical and value-driven citizens and leaders.
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