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1 Doctoral Student, Center of Advanced Study in Education (CASE), Department of Education,
Faculty of Education and Psychology, The Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India.
E-mail: sarpongray@gmail.com
Teacher
Education
Journal of
Bangladesh © Teacher Education Journal of Bangladesh (TEJB)
(TEJB) Vol. 02 , No. 01 , Nov. 2023, pp. 97 - 106
ISSN: 2957 -4919
Digitalization of Education in Ghana: An Overview
Reagan Adjei Sarpong¹
Abstract
The latest digital transformation trend has made the digitalisation of education relevant and
challenging to avoid in the development and growth of humans in today's fast-changing world.
A crucial step in Ghana's transformation is its education's ability to co-evolve with disruptive
technologies. This chapter focuses on the digitalisation of education in Ghana. It was learned
that developing the Ghanaian student's knowledge power and super skill sets to leverage the
potentially disruptive technologies will allow them to communicate across cultures, time, and
places, preparing them for a radically different future. The chapter revealed that, Ghana
education system is characterised by insufficient ICT resources, ICT programmes initiated and
not entirely implemented by the previous government are not completed by the next
government, there is a lack of guidance on how best to address new developments in
educational technology and low priority on the use of advanced technologies. The chapter
suggested that, the government, corporate sector, and civil society organisations must develop
plans and strategies to ensure a sufficient supply of human resources, computers, internet
connectivity, and electricity at the various levels of education in the country, existing and new
projects must be integrated into new planning process for the deployment of ICT in education,
policymakers must develop policies that do not completely ban the use of mobile phones in
schools while still allowing students to learn critical life skills related to phone usage. Further,
the acquisition and better use of modern ICT must be a top concern for Ghana's higher
education institutions (HEIs). Lastly, the HEIs must provide digital framework that fosters a
secure, adaptable, and useful digital environment.
Keywords: Education, Digitalisation, Policies, Programmes
98 Teacher Education Journal of Bangladesh Vol. 02, No. 01
Introduction
The latest digital transformation trend has made education's digitalisation relevant and
challenging to avoid in the development and growth of humans in today's fast-changing world.
Through the transformation, society is motivated to pursue the kind of education which seek to
enhance students' experience through digitalisation. In the educational process, digitalisation
involves converting text, images, video, and audio into digital format that can be played by the
computer (Bejinaru, 2013).
Education digitalisation is a powerful wave of reforming and modernising the global
educational environment (Bejinaru, 2013; Machekhina, 2017). According to Gupta & Ladiwal
(2021), the digitalisation of education makes searching for different information very simple.
It requires end users (students) to fulfil their information development (Gupta and Ladiwal,
2021). It is obvious from these statements that the digitalisation of education will provide
students with superior knowledge, skills, and relevant information from anywhere in the world,
allowing them to remain relevant and competitive in the job market.
In terms of civilisational growth, the digitalisation of education must be prioritised. Ghana has
incorporated digitalisation as a cross-cutting issue into its education sector strategies (Ministry
of Education Ghana, n.d.; Langthaler and Bazafkan, 2020). The Ghanaian government is
committed to a comprehensive programme of rapid deployment and utilisation of information
and communication technology (ICT) in the education sector to transform the education system
and, as a result, better the lives of Ghanaians. This chapter describes the Ghanaian government's
attempts to deploy and utilise ICT in education. The chapter focuses on Ghana's ICT policies
and programmes, ICT initiatives in school education, higher education digitalisation, issues
and challenges, and suggestions.
ICT Policies and Programmes in Ghana
ICT is important in all areas of national life, including politics, economics, and social and
cultural development (Hennessy et al., 2010). Without a doubt, it is rapidly transforming all
aspects of existence. This has prompted the Ghanaian government to create ICT policies and
programmes to guarantee the appropriate deployment, exploitation, and development of ICTs
to accelerate the nation's socio-economic growth.
ICT Policies in Ghana
Ghana ICT for Accelerated Development (ICT4AD) Policy, 2003
The policy clearly shows Ghana's vision for the digital era. It outlined the policy commitments
required to materialise the vision "to transform Ghana into an information-rich knowledge-
based and technology-driven high-income economy and society". This policy called for
immediate and coordinated action to use ICT for economic development and social change in
the nation (Ghana ICT for Accelerated Development ICT4AD, 2003). The strategy promotes
ICT use in government and governance, education, health, agriculture, banking and finance,
research capacity development, construction, supply chain management, human resource
growth, etc.
Reagan Adjei Sarpong : Digitalization of Education in Ghana 99
ICT in Education (ICTE) Policy, 2015
Ghana released its ICT in Education Policy Framework in 2015, emphasising teacher training
in digital skills and introducing ICT as a topic beginning in primary school (World Bank, 2022),
with aim to shaping teachers and students ability to succeed in the global marketplace and offer
a better quality of life for the Ghanaian citizen. Since, distruptive technologies are already
altering traditional business models and pathways to development, yielding significant gains,
increased convenience, as well as supporting better access to services for consumers. For
instance, in 2016 alone, the digital economy was worth an estimated 11.5 trillion dollars
worldwide, equivalent to 15.5 per cent of global GDP. And it is forecast to reach 25 per cent
in less than a decade, far outpacing the growth of the ‘traditional’ economy (Huawei and
Oxford Economics, 2016). The policy sought to transform the educational system to improve
the quality of teaching and learning at the various levels of education and expand access to
education, training, and research resources and facilities to produce cutting edge and skilled
manpower for the growth of the country’s economy.
ICT Programmes in School Education
Collaborating with various development partners and non-governmental organisations, the
Ghanaian government has launched several ICT education projects to transform the pre-tertiary
education system. The projects align with the stated goals of the country's ICT reforms. Some
notable ICT projects presently being enacted in schools are as follows:
One Teacher One Laptop is a modern programme to improve lesson preparation, teaching,
and learning outcomes (GNAT News, 2022). All government-employed teachers from
kindergarten to senior high school are included in the target group.
The Girls in ICT project introduces primary and junior high school girls to scratch and the
fundamental structures of programming applications, after which they compete as part of a
training programme. ICT laboratories have been constructed in the schools of the girls who
excelled in the competition. In addition, one hundred thousand Senior High School females
were taught cyber security and data privacy to inspire young girls interested in careers in ICT
(Graphic Online, 2022). The programme encourages girls to dispel the myth that ICT education
is only for boys.
The Ghana Learning Radio Reading Programme offers highly interactive and simple-to-
follow reading lessons in English and the 11 formal Ghanaian languages of instruction for
learners in Kindergarten two through fourth grade (Graphic Online, 2021). When schools
closed during the Covid-19 crisis, it was an alternative learning intervention to keep children
occupied with learning at home. Although the children are presently enrolled in school, this
programme is intended to supplement their education.
The Mobile School Report Card (mSRC) project employs an android-based mobile phone
application developed in 2014 to replace the paper-based School Report Card (pSRC) used in
Ghanaian primary schools since 2011 to collect information about the teaching and learning
environment in Ghanaian primary schools (Abdulai, et al., 2018; Tsapali et al., 2021). It
targeted elementary schools in 20 districts.
100 Teacher Education Journal of Bangladesh Vol. 02, No. 01
Making Ghanaian Girls Great (MGCubed) used qualified trainers in Accra studios to
deliver live interactive arithmetic, English, and gender empowerment classes to remote
classrooms via solar-powered and satellite-enabled technology (Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese
2020; Tsapali et al., 2021). Primary, junior high, and out-of-school girls are the intended
audience. The initiative reached over 36,000 learners.
Ghana Reads is an initiative to increase universal literacy by utilising low-cost tablets and the
Raspberry Pi, which contains the Basic eLearning Library (BeLL) — an offline digital library.
Students study in small groups and at their own pace, with the assistance of trained instructors
(Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese 2020). Fifty (50) schools from eight of the sixteen (16) regions in
Ghana benefit from this project.
Eneza Education is a mobile-phone-based learning platform that allows users to access lesson
plans and ask instructors clarifying questions via SMS. Teachers and primary and secondary
students from rural and underserved regions were targeted. Over 6,500 instructors have been
trained to use Ghana Eneza, which is used by one million students (MIT solve, 2020;
Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese 2020).
e-Transform Ghana Project uses ICT to provide government services more efficiently and
widely. The project contributes to developing an educational portal that facilitates knowledge
sharing and provides teachers, students, parents, and researchers access to best-practice lesson
plans, digital curriculum material, and teaching and learning tools. Also, it contributes to
enhancing teachers' networks and capacity building. In addition, the initiative seeks to connect
55 secondary schools with a significant need for connectivity (World Bank Group, 2013;
Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese, 2020). Senior high schools were the focus.
Ghana Accountability for Learning Outcomes Project (GALOP) seeks to improve the
quality of teaching in basic schools while also increasing equity and accountability in Ghana's
educational system (Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese 2020; Tsapali et al., 2021). The project's
beneficiary schools have all received high-quality HP laptops and high-speed modems, making
it simpler to collect and transfer data on teachers' and students' weekly attendance to provide
school management solutions.
Instant Schools Network offers learners open educational resource material in subjects such
as maths and science sourced from platforms such as Khan Academy and aligned with the local
curriculum. The service is free to Vodafone customers and is intended for simple, low-cost
devices with basic data connectivity (3G) (Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese, 2020). Students in
primary and high school are among those targeted.
The One Laptop per Child (OLPC) initiative aims to improve access to and use of technology
in impoverished and rural areas around the globe, with a special emphasis on underprivileged
children. As the government sought to boost computer usage in schools, Ghana first agreed
with OLPC to buy 10,000 XO laptops delivered in 2009 (Tsapali et al., 2021).
Reagan Adjei Sarpong : Digitalization of Education in Ghana 101
Chalkboard Education provides schools with low-tech software and services to create and
monitor training programmes on mobile devices without an internet connection (Tsapali et al.,
2021). It aims to improve secondary education instruction and learning.
AkooBooks Audio is a platform and service supplier that converts African books into engaging
audiobooks accessible via mobile phones (Tsapali et al., 2021). Its mission is to enhance
secondary school teaching and learning.
The School Connectivity Project offers high-speed computers, printers, scanners, projectors,
and servers to educational institutions. It is one of many initiatives undertaken by Ghana
Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC) to promote the development and
use of ICT in (rural) Ghana (Tsapali et al., 2021).
OpenSTEM Africa promotes the effective teaching and learning of practical science in
Ghanaian senior high schools by developing a Virtual Lab of practical science apps, which
helps provide more opportunities for learners to engage with practical science; professional
development for teachers to develop effective ICT-based teaching and learning approaches;
and professional support for heads of science to help improve the experiential teaching and
learning of the practical science syllabus. Important practical science apps have been connected
to the Ghanaian curriculum. They are being co-developed to provide up to 100 interactive
online virtual experiments in collaboration with the Centre for Distance Learning and Open
Schooling (CENDLOS). With the local iBox server, the scientific apps will help up to 148
schools and up to 1.2 million senior high school students and staff via the internet (Tsapali et
al., 2021).
STEM/STEAM Project is a Ministry of Education project by Protogroup to provide Science,
Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) centres, Educational Kits,
Training, and Curriculum in STEAM education throughout Ghana. Although the majority of
the project is concerned with the construction of STEAM centres and the distribution of
educational kits, there is an EdTech component that introduces elementary and secondary
school students to the use of Learning Management Systems and Cyber Robotics Coding by
the CoderZ: an innovative and fun learning platform for students worldwide that engages
students through the use of 3D simulated robots. This initiative is still underway (Tsapali et al.,
2021).
Secondary Education Improvement Programme (SEIP) funds the development and
implementation of the i-box (a local file server that does not require internet access) and i-
campus (a web-based server that requires internet access) technologies to provide supplemental
educational materials to students in low-performing senior high schools. The initiative is
expected to benefit 150,000 students in underperforming schools, 30,000 new secondary school
students, 2,000 senior high school teachers and headmasters, and other education officials
(Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese, 2020)
102 Teacher Education Journal of Bangladesh Vol. 02, No. 01
Digitalization of Higher Education in Ghana
In this digital era, efforts to integrate digitalisation in higher education in the face of a rapidly
increasing student population present numerous opportunities. As digital technologies continue
to transform academics, research, and community engagement at an exponential rate, the
Ghanaian government, higher education institutions, and development partners have launched
a variety of projects to leverage emerging technologies into Ghana's higher education. Some
notable programmes to incorporate digitalisation in Ghana's higher education institutions
include;
Access to Wi-Fi: Universities provide a wireless internet connection to registered students and
faculty for academics and research. With the support of the World Bank, about thirteen
universities operate free Wi-Fi systems in their institutions to promote e-learning and the
administration of student records (Kpessa-whyte and Dzisah, 2022).
Learning Management Systems (LMS): Moodle and Sakai LMS are used by universities in
Ghana to conduct distance learning programmes. The University of Ghana adopted the Sakai
Learning Management System in 2012 as a learning platform for distance education
programmes, shifting from a print-based to an online delivery method (Tagoe and Cole, 2020).
Students and teachers can hold classes on Sakai while connected to the internet via the free
Wi-Fi system (Kpessa-whyte and Dzisah, 2022). Similarly, Kwame Nkrumah University of
Science and Technology has taken advantage of the Wi-Fi systems and has put in place an E-
learning and virtual classroom portal in addition to students' application called AIM, where
students can check their registration status and results, among others (Andoh-Baidoo et al.,
2012; Kpessa-whyte and Dzisah, 2022). The University of Cape Coast has also implemented
the Moodle e-learning platform with added portals for lecturers and students (Alhassan, 2019;
Kpessa-whyte and Dzisah, 2022).
Digital Libraries: Seven of Ghana's nine state university libraries have begun some form of
digitisation project (Dzandza, 2020; Narh-Kert et al., 2022). Access to digital material and
services such as online databases, institutional repositories, online public access catalogues
(OPACs), and World Wide Web (www) resources is made possible by digital libraries.
Transforming Teaching, Education, and Learning (T-TEL) is a non-profit organisation
founded in Ghana in 2020. It builds on a six-year Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office (FCDO) funded education strengthening project in Ghana (2014-20) that aimed to
transform pre-service teacher education in Ghana by improving the quality of teaching and
learning in relevant national organisations, institutions, and all 40 Colleges of Education. T-
TEL's work included developing insights into how educational technology (for example,
mobile technology such as tablets) can improve access to quality education information,
support effective teaching and learning, and allow tutor communities of practice. T-TEL was
also engaged in the formation of a Virtual Learning Taskforce for Teacher Education to reduce
educational disruption caused by Covid-19 (Tsapali et al., 2021).
Reagan Adjei Sarpong : Digitalization of Education in Ghana 103
Issues and Challenges Confronting School and Higher Education Levels
The ICT projects aim to boost the use of ICT- based applications in Ghana's educational
system. On the other hand, concerns such as sustainability and difficulty of scaling up ICT
initiatives across these levels of education require considerable attention.
Issues and Challenges at the School Education Level
Most development programmes in classroom education have been piloted at the school level.
Insufficient ICT resources restrain the expansion of small-scale projects to serve more students
and enhance intervention effectiveness (Graphic Online, 2022). The few computers the
government provides to teachers and students to allow digital devices in teaching and learning
are of poor quality. Other problems with these computers include unknown brands, inflated
costs, etc. Moreover, ICT programmes initiated and not entirely implemented by the previous
government are not completed by the next government, notably when the governments'
political ideologies differ. As a result, these initiatives benefit only a few students, and people
with disabilities are frequently marginalised.
Dzinotyiweyi and Taddese (2020) conducted a "country-wide research review of EdTech
research at the school-based level in Ghana" which revealed that, electricity is available in 25%
of primary schools, 49% of junior high schools, and 78.6% of senior high schools. It was also
revealed that, 8.4% of primary schools have access to the internet for teaching and learning,
18.7% of junior high schools have access to the internet for teaching and learning, and 39.4%
of senior high schools have access to the internet for teaching and learning. Furthermore,
computers are accessible in 3.5% of primary schools, 13% of junior high schools, and 34.9%
of senior high schools for teaching and learning. Access to a reliable electricity source is a
widespread problem. More so, disparities between rural and urban areas regarding access to
computers, internet connectivity, and electricity are increasing.
In Ghana, students cannot use mobile phones during their pre-tertiary schooling. Using a cell
phone in class is a severe violation. School officials may discipline or confiscate the mobile
phone if a student violates this regulation. According to Tsapali et al. (2021), 97% of urban
households in Ghana have access to a mobile phone. In addition, access to mobile is common
even in rural households. The authors asserted that, the ICT in Education policy seeks to serve
as a road map for implementing the ICT4AD policy's education sector priorities. Still, it lacks
guidance on addressing the best new educational technology developments, such as the recent
increase in mobile phone ownership and concerns about its use in schools. Mobile phone
prohibitions are a disservice to today's students and teachers (Fisher and Frey 2010; Keengwe
et al., 2014).
Issues and Challenges at the Higher Education Level
According to Lusigi (2019), higher education institutions (HEIs) in Africa are underperforming
in two worldwide university rankings. Lusigi cited a low priority for the acquisition and better
use of advanced technologies in Africa's HEIs as the main attribute to the under performance.
As is the case in most African institutions of higher learning, HEIs in Ghana are not
exceptional. Ghana’s HEIs digital provisions are insufficient, and digital teaching and learning
104 Teacher Education Journal of Bangladesh Vol. 02, No. 01
are not prioritised enough in their curricula (Armah and Westhuizen, 2019). In addition, the
higher education system in Ghana is characterised by insufficient computers in the library, low
internet bandwidth, very low information retrieval skills, inadequate ICT training, and a paucity
of competent Information Technology (IT) professionals (Appiah and Abdul-Rahim, 2021).
Consequently, the effectiveness in carrying out their mandates suffers.
Suggestions
To improve the integration of ICT in the education system, the government, corporate
sector, and civil society organisations must develop plans and strategies to ensure a
sufficient supply of human resources, computers, internet connectivity, and electricity
at the various levels of education in the country.
To ensure that existing and new projects are integrated into the new planning process
for the deployment of ICT in schools, well-established laws and legal, regulatory, and
institutional structures must be put in place.
Policymakers must develop policies that do not completely ban the use of mobile
phones in schools while still allowing students to learn critical life skills related to
phone usage.
The acquisition and improved use of modern ICT must be a top concern for Ghana's
institutions of higher learning.
HEIs must provide digital framework that fosters a secure, adaptable, and useful digital
environment.
Conclusion
A crucial step in Ghana's transformation is its education's ability to co-evolve with disruptive
technologies. Developing the Ghanaian student's knowledge power and super skill sets to
leverage the potential of disruptive technologies will allow them to communicate across
cultures, time, and places, preparing them for a radically different future. Educational
administrators, teachers and students at various levels of education must take advantage of all
benefits of ICT adoption and use. This chapter advocates for strong and stable collaboration
among the government, corporate sector, and civil society organisations to build plans and
strategies to ensure long-term sustainability and expansion of ICT initiatives at all levels of
education in Ghana.
Reagan Adjei Sarpong : Digitalization of Education in Ghana 105
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