Mrs Adwoa Amoako, Tema West Municipal Chief Executive, says the uncontrolled and excessive use of mobile phones is a bane to effective learning.
Mrs Amoako said this on Tuesday when she together with Mr Francis Steele, Tema West Municipal Education Director, Mr Kwesi Poku Bosumpem, Presiding Member and other officials visited some basic schools in the Municipality to interact and welcome parents, primary one and kindergarten one pupils to school in commemoration of, “My First Day at School” programme.
She indicated that the new trend of children addicted to mobile phones was worrying adding that it was disturbing seeing children fight over phones with their parents and guardians.
She said instead of concentrating on learning from their environment and books, children were now hooked on to watsup, facebook and other social media activities, a situation she said was detrimental to their learning process.
She stated that parents must encourage their children to take their studies serious instead of giving out mobile phones to them for the wrong reasons reminding them that the need for children to learn for a brighter and innovative future must not be compromised.
The MCE urged students not to replace their local languages with English but rather use it hand in hand as it was foundation of their culture and traditions.
Mrs Christiana Ablakwa, Basic School Coordinator at the Tema Metropolitan Education Directorate, explaining how the new curriculum would work to parents, said children would no longer be refered to as pupils but rather learners adding that teachers were facilitators of learning under the new system.
Mrs Ablakwa added that the need for teachers to facilitate learning instead of the spoon feeding methods of teaching was to help the children to become critical thinkers who would learn from their environment.
She urged teachers to show love to the children as that would encourage them to come to school adding that they must also encouraged them to bring out the best in them.
The team visited the Old Lashibi TMA Basic School were a total of 26 primary one learners comprising of nine boys and 17 girls in addition to five kindergarten pupils had been enrolled.
A total of 28 learners made up of 15 boys and 13 girls had been enrolled at the Baatsonaa TMA Primary School.
The dignitaries presented exercise books, pencils, crayons and biscuits to the children to welcome them.
By Laudia Sawer
