NUTE must strengthen 49 colleges, not become another public university – Eduwatch

Ghana's National University of Teacher Education (NUTE) faces scrutiny from Eduwatch, which urges the reform to bolster the country's 49 public Colleges of Education instead of crafting a new conventional university. Eduwatch's position paper, released on August 25, argues that NUTE should act as an apex institution focused on academic coordination, quality assurance, research, and postgraduate programs, while the Colleges retain their role as primary undergraduate teacher preparation sites.

The watchdog warns against establishing a large, competitive undergraduate campus that could erode College strength and create mission drift. Eduwatch emphasizes that NUTE should establish a unified framework for assessment, grading, certification, and quality assurance, potentially reducing the payment burden of approximately 20% of fees currently paid by College students to mentoring universities.

The think tank calls for a sustainable financing model to cover staff, facilities, research, and professional development, warning that restructuring without adequate funding risks changing governance without improving teaching and learning. Eduwatch advocates for NUTE to attract and retain PhD-qualified faculty through university-level appointments, research opportunities, and postgraduate supervision, with quality assurance focusing on graduate competence and classroom readiness, rather than mere accreditation and compliance.

The organization maintains that NUTE's success should be measured by its ability to strengthen the Colleges, enhance teacher preparation, reduce student costs, deepen research, and improve learning outcomes in Ghanaian schools.