Dead knowledge in our schools-Who is checking the textbooks?

The era of fake news, fake data, fake videos and fake photos ought to put everyone on their toes and on guard: we simply can’t accept or act on things at their face value anymore.

Students, for one, must be in a position to verify the authenticity of any given facts before they can be used to add credibility to themselves and the disciplines. 

Critical Thinking

The goals of a Creative and Critical Thinking course I teach is as follows: The information age and the Internet allow us to gather various materials from across the world quickly and easily.

Every textbook, in one form or another, contributes to the teaching of English.

Badly written textbooks, therefore, undermine the teaching of English. 

Educators must appreciate these inter-linkages and ensure only the highest editorial standards across all textbooks.

A national policy may also be required to settle on which English spelling to use in our schools: British, as has historically been the case, or American, which is now the default on most computers and electronic devices? We need consistency.

Though the Ghana Book Development Council (GBDC) is supposed to prevent these lapses and ensure standards, it is clear to the economist that it has woefully failed in that mission.

He insisted that the situation was no different in the professions. 

There are accountants with no knowledge of Excel, and according to a recent nominee to the Supreme Court, people with first degree in Law who did not know the basic elements of a valid contract now wanted to pursue a Master’s degree in Law. 

Such is the extent of the confusion. He asked, any wonder we couldn’t solve the basic problems of our development?

The author is a trainer of teachers, leadership coach and quality education advocate.

Credit: Graphic online
Blog: www.anishaffar.org