Author: Guest Blogger

The first born of six children, leadership and responsibility both came naturally to Gifty Tabuaa. While growing up, Gifty didn’t have a specific career in mind. She just wanted to become a responsible woman when she reached adulthood. She says, “Even though I found myself doing most household chores, as part of my responsibilities as the first child of the family,  and also assisting my mum in trading, my studies were never interrupted.’”

Gifty Tabuaa has been an active teacher since 2006, and is married with two daughters. Currently, her students number over one hundred and thirty.

Gifty attended Berekum Senior High School, where she studied science. At a point, after completing school, she applied to work with the Ministry of Health, in particular, the Kintampo Disease Control Unit. Unfortunately, she didn’t make the shortlist so she opted to go to St. Louis College of Education in Kumasi. After a year in school, she realized that she had made a very good choice: teaching was perfect for her. Later she was posted to an Islamic school where she taught Science and Ghanaian language.

Gifty has always loved science, and in order to improve herself, she attends workshops to enhance her knowledge. After attending a workshop on STEM, she managed to secure laboratory  equipment which has made teaching and learning of science in her school much easier. She describes this as a very motivational.

Gifty Tabuaa is currently a member of BSTEM. She joined the organisation in order to “market Science and Math to others and to train students  in Science and Maths.” She expects that this will help them realize that Science and Mathematics are not really difficult courses.

She finds teaching STEM interesting because of the real life application of scientific principles. The availability of Teaching Learning Materials also make STEM lessons practical and facilitates student learning, making the students participate actively during lessons.

When she was told of the JUNEOS challenge, she decided to focus on an experiment that would be beneficial to most residents of the town who were mainly farmers. “We chose to conduct the experiment on the water holding capacity of the three soil types in order to understand which types of crops to grow in which type of soil,” she says. She and her students selected the appropriate materials and practiced the experiment. According to Gifty, the most important lesson she has learnt from her participation in the JUNEOS Challenge is that it is very important to allow students to do practical experiments by themselves, while supervising. This unearths their hidden talents and potentials.

Gifty is also grateful to have received the right tools from JUNEOS which she is using to teach effectively. She thinks that every school should participate in the challenge because it motivates students and teachers.

In the future, Gifty Tabuaa hopes to teach at a higher level of education.

Article by Kofi Konadu Berko.

Kofi Konadu Berko is passionate about education and youth development. He holds a B.A in Adult Education and Human Resource Studies from the University Of Ghana. His works have been  published in the historic Afroyoung Adult anthology titled Waterbirds On the Lakeshore, Adabraka: Stories From the Center Of the World, Tampered Press and the Kalahari Review. He blogs at obolokofi.wordpress.com

Mr. Dotse firmly  believes that STEM is interesting involves lots of practical demonstrations which makes it enjoyable for students. There was a time when, after a class using cylindrical objects to construct building foundation, some of his students approached him to get materials so they could carry on with some experiments themselves. He also recalls a practical session he had on electrical motors with his students. The next day, one student came to school with a small miniature electric motor he had made based on what he had learnt in class. Mr. Dotse describes these two events as the most inspiring experiences he has had as an educator. It’s no coincidence that during the JUNEOS challenge his students’ experiment involved electrical motor.

But how did Mr Dotse become a teacher? Initially, he had wanted to be a pharmacist. His desire to become a teacher came later, but not without some resistance from his family, who did not agree with his career choice. In order to please his family, he studied Telecommunications Engineering at a polytechnic. However, he didn’t let his dream of becoming a teacher escape. He eventually persuaded his entire family of the benefits of being a teacher and then went ahead to pursue a degree in Education at the University of Education, Winneba. He has since been teaching for the past nine years, and this is the work he intends doing for the rest of his life. Currently, he has about 150 students. His efforts have been recognized in his district, and in 2013 and 2017, he won an award as the best ICT teacher runner up and winner respectively. Speaking about his profession, Mr Dotse has this to say: “What really motivates me is seeing the students I have taught becoming great and successful people in the society.”

Edem’s main aim as a STEM educator is to impart knowledge to his students and help them progress in all aspects of their science education. In his teaching model, he achieves this aim by drawing on past learning experiences and knowledge he has acquired from the various workshops he has attended. He is therefore able to give his students the foundation they require so they can build on it when they reach Senior High School. 

Mr. Dotse learnt about the JUNEOS challenge from the Regional Science Coordinator. His immediate thought was to figure out an experiment which was not only unique and captivating but would also reflect what they learnt in class. Eventually, he settled on the transformation of energy. The experiment conducted by his students involved using electrical motors to demonstrate this concept. The JUNEOS challenge has generated a lot of interest among the students and the school science club membership has increased since then.

As a child, Edem admired Professor Miriam Ewurama Addy, former host of the National Maths and Science Quiz, which was and remains his favorite TV show. When it comes to music, which he enjoys, Mr. Dotse names Stonebwoy as a favourite due to his versatility.

Kofi Konadu Berko is passionate about education and youth development. He holds a B.A in Adult Education and Human Resource Studies from the University Of Ghana. His works have been  published in the historic Afroyoung Adult anthology titled Waterbirds On the Lakeshore, Adabraka: Stories From the Center Of the World, Tampered Press and the Kalahari Review. He blogs at obolokofi.wordpress.com

Meet Mohammed Mahama from Tamale International School, who has been teaching for the past twenty years and handles about one hundred and twenty students. Mr. Mahama’s childhood hero was Amitach Bachchan, an Indian actor, whose films he really enjoyed. Mohammed also loves football. His favourite celebrity player is Lionel Messi.

When Mr. Mahama was younger he wanted to become a businessman. As he grew this changed, and he hoped to be a scientist. What happened in the end, however, was that he studied Agricultural Science in secondary school, after which he enrolled in teacher training college and subsequently became a professional teacher.

Mr. Mahama draws inspiration from the fact that his students achieve greater heights by learning STEM, and he is encouraged when his students get good results in their examinations. Mr. Mahama explains that one of the benefits of being a STEM educator is that it makes him feel important in the society especially because he identifies each student and guides them through the learning process. Being a STEM educator also makes him keep abreast with new developments in the field. Mr. Mahama is currently a member of the Ghana Association of Science Teachers (GAST). He explains that being with people in the same profession educates and motivates him.

Mr. Mahama was told about the JUNEOS Challenge by his colleague. He then acquired the apparatus he needed and proceeded to prepare his students for the challenge. Their experiment involved the inflation of a balloon using carbon dioxide produced from a reaction of caustic soda. Mr. Mahama describes his participation in the challenge as a beneficial one. It has given him new teaching methods he can apply to ensure that his lessons are practicals-oriented.

He hopes that the JUNEOS Challenge will be held annually because it is interesting and educative, and hopes that the JUNEOS Team are able to continue in their endeavor to grow the interest of students in science.

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Kofi Konadu Berko is passionate about education and youth development. He holds a B.A in Adult Education and Human Resource Studies from the University Of Ghana. His works have been  published in the historic Afroyoung Adult anthology titled Waterbirds On the Lakeshore, Adabraka: Stories From the Center Of the World, Tampered Press and the Kalahari Review. He blogs at obolokofi.wordpress.com

Mohammed Hamza currently teaches over 200 students. He has been teaching for the past decade. He hopes to become an engineering lecturer in the next 5 to 10 years. He enjoys science shows and football matches. His favourite celebrity is footballer Christiano Ronaldo.

Growing up, most of Mohammed Hamza’s siblings were studying Business at the Senior High School level, so he followed in their footsteps with the hope of becoming a banker. However, after school he taught for a time at a private school. His experience there made him realize his interest in teaching and so he enrolled at the Teacher Training College.

Mr. Mohammed Hamza loves Science and therefore he continues to improve his knowledge and skills in STEM. He does this by watching science-based TV shows, YouTube and social media. This helps him to keep abreast with things happening around him.

On what motivates him in his profession, Mr. Hamza explains “The success of my past students keeps me motivated.” In addition, he says that his most positive experience has been his ability to help students understand the reality of concepts taught in class.

As a STEM educator, he makes an impact in the lives of his students which he believes goes a long way to contribute to the success of the country. He adds that another benefit of  teaching STEM is that it makes it possible for both educators and students to understand technology and their environment. Finally, STEM education builds students’ interest in learning science. Mr. Mahama loves it when he helps students to understand the concept of nature without societal or religious interference.

When he was told of the JUNEOS Challenge he informed his students, selected a good experiment, and then they began working at their participation. Their JUNEOS Challenge experiment was inspired by the need to teach people in remote areas how to purify their water in order to prevent contraction of water-borne diseases.

Mr. Mohammed Hamza would not hesitate to participate in the challenge again because it allows him to show how science can be used to solve problems. He believes that this will go a long way to benefit others.

He hopes that the JUNEOS Challenge is organized annually and publicized to reach a wide audience. He also prays that the JUNEOS team receive attention and support from the government as well. This will enable them to reach students in remote areas. He hopes the JUNEOS Team can guide teachers in particular topics to teach their students so that students can gain more knowledge.

Mr. Mohammed Hamza’s participation in the Challenge has positively influenced his teaching. He has learnt to improvise with available materials in order to teach effectively. It has also made him pay keen attention to experiments he demonstrates to his students. Most importantly, it has improved his confidence as a STEM educator.

Stay tuned by following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@wegoinnovate), Subscribe to our Youtube Channel and be informed!

Kofi Konadu Berko is passionate about education and youth development. He holds a B.A in Adult Education and Human Resource Studies from the University Of Ghana. His works have been  published in the historic Afroyoung Adult anthology titled Waterbirds On the Lakeshore, Adabraka: Stories From the Center Of the World, Tampered Press and the Kalahari Review. He blogs at obolokofi.wordpress.com

Mr. Osman Yakubu has been teaching for the past 14 years. He currently teaches about four hundred students. He enjoys watching the news on TV.

Earlier in life, Mr. Yakubu had wanted to be a medical doctor but financial and family issues didn’t allow him to fulfill this dream. Later on due to his admiration for Prof. Francis K. Allotey, he decided that he would become a mathematician. After completing his high school education, his uncle advised him to enroll in teacher training school which he did. He taught at the Primary and Junior High School level before he continued to the university where he studied BSc. Biological Science.

Mr. Yakubu’s love for science is reflected in his study of science at all levels of education: SHS, Training College and University. He explains that, he improves and enhances his knowledge in STEM through research via Google, YouTube and in discussions with others.

He explains that “Studying nature and why things happen in our natural environment inspires me as a STEM educator.” Mr. Yakubu enjoys teaching STEM because of the process of brainstorming where he and his students find solutions to challenging phenomena. This helps them to acquire and enhance their knowledge and skills.

Although Mr. Yakubu admits that he is also motivated by his salary, what motivates him most is the continuous acknowledgement and appreciation he receives from students regarding the impact he has made in their lives.

Mr. Yakubu says that one of  the benefits of being an educator is that he feels important because he contributes to the development of the nation by teaching the future generation. He loves being a STEM educator because of his ability to identify the learning challenges of each of his students and treating each of them differently so they can understand/overcome these challenges.

His participation in the JUNEOS Challenge has made him focus on making his lessons practical because he’s realized that it is the most effective way of teaching. This method of teaching has also aroused the interest of his students and they are willing to pursue studies in science. This makes Mr. Yakubu very happy.

Mr. Yakubu hopes that JUNEOS gets more teachers to participate in the challenge and also organizes more workshops to train teachers. He adds that “They could support science teachers to pursue science to higher levels as well as supporting schools with resources to improve practical learning.”

Mr. Yakubu says that he would not hesitate to participate in the JUNEOS Challenge again because it is an avenue to share ideas and acquire knowledge in science. Additionally, it  gives teachers information on how to use diverse approaches to teach students in the classroom.

Stay tuned by following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@wegoinnovate), Subscribe to our Youtube Channel and be informed!

Kofi Konadu Berko is passionate about education and youth development. He holds a B.A in Adult Education and Human Resource Studies from the University Of Ghana. His works have been  published in the historic Afroyoung Adult anthology titled Waterbirds On the Lakeshore, Adabraka: Stories From the Center Of the World, Tampered Press and the Kalahari Review. He blogs at obolokofi.wordpress.com

Mr. George Owusu Amponsem comes from a family of fourteen from Adansi in the Ashanti region. He has been teaching for seven years now and currently has over one hundred and twenty students. In the next five to ten years, he hopes to become a lecturer and consultant in science.

Growing up, Mr. Amponsem hoped to be a pilot, and along the line he also considered going to Nursing Training School to enter the health professions. However, lack of financial support made it impossible to follow any of these dreams. But Mr. Amponsem did not allow any of these hardships to draw him back. After engaging in petty trading for a while, he went to Wiawso College of Education from where he received a Diploma in Education. He then continued to acquire his Bachelor and Masters Degree in Education at the University of Cape Coast.

Mr. Amponsem is greatly fascinated by science. He explains that the  practical nature of science is like no other. In his very own words “Science is part of our daily lives and we can never do away with science: this is what keeps me motivated in my profession.” He continues to improve his knowledge in STEM by attending various workshops. He has been a member of the Ghana Association of Science Teacher (GAST) since 2012 and a member of BSTEM since 2017. This helps him to share knowledge and learn from others who are in the same field.

On the benefits of being a STEM educator, Mr. Amponsem explains that his profession gives him the opportunity to clear any misconceptions that people may have about STEM and also educate them on issues relating to science. One positive experience for him as an educator was when he had the opportunity to interact with international bodies as a result of a STEM workshop.

Mr. Amponsem’s students were excited to find out that they were going to perform an experiment on TV. He explains, ”My students love engineering and so they were very interested in conducting an experiment for the JUNEOS Challenge.” The students used the opportunity to display the gadgets and devices which they had made.

Mr. Amponsem suggests that the JUNEOS Challenge can be improved by organising it in such a way that more students get to participate. He also wants more aspects of science to be included in the JUNEOS challenge.

Mr. Amponsem is grateful to JUNEOS for giving his students the opportunity to exhibit their talents. For him, participating in the challenge has also increased his interest in learning more science, especially physics. He hopes that practical STEM lessons are encouraged because it will go a long way to improve Ghana’s development.

Stay tuned by following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@wegoinnovate), Subscribe to our Youtube Channel and be informed!

Kofi Konadu Berko is passionate about Education and Youth development. He holds a B.A in Adult Education and Human Resource Studies from the University Of Ghana. His works have been  published in the historic Afroyoung Adult anthology titled Waterbirds On the Lakeshore, Adabraka: Stories From the Center Of the World , Tampered Press and the Kalahari Review. He blogs at obolokofi.wordpress.com

Mr. Sakara Salia has been teaching for thirty-three years. Currently, he teaches a class of thirty five students. Mr. Salia comes from a family of twenty five. He resides in Tamale and teaches at the Kanvilli RC School Complex. Mr. Sakara has always wanted to be someone who trains children and today he has achieved that dream.

He always wanted to be a teacher, following in the footsteps of his father who was also an educator. He started school at Sakasaka Experimental and the impressive teaching of his teachers fed his love for teaching. After attending secondary school at GHANASCO, His dad encouraged him to go to training college in order to achieve his dream. He enrolled in Bagabaga training college and was posted to a school in 1986.

Mr. Sakara Salia believes that science is apparent in our everyday lives and can help develop the country. “We should be serious with science such that we will churn out people who will be meaningful and come out to produce [technology] to make our nation a better place.”

Mr. Sakara draws inspiration from training students by taking them through practical concepts. What he enjoys most about teaching STEM is how his students are involved in the lessons. The joy of imparting knowledge to students keeps him motivated in his profession. As a teacher who will be retiring soon, he is gratified when he watches the batch he has taught leaves, and a new one arrives.

When he was informed of the JUNEOS Challenge, he went through the syllabus to find a catchy topic. Eventually he and his students settled on the periscope for their experiment. Mr. Sakara’s students focused on demonstrating of the reflection of light using a periscope.

Through his participation in the JUNEOS challenge, Mr. Sakara’s teaching has gained a more practical aspect, which has made his students more attentive to his lessons. As a result of this, they are able to  demonstrate what they learn and understand the material very well. Mr. Sakara Salia explains that this helps them to become people who pay attention to detail in real life.

Mr. Sakara Salia involves himself in STEM communities. He has been a member of BSTEM for 2 years and is also a member of the Ghana Association of Science Teachers (GAST). This gives him the opportunity to enhance his knowledge and skills and to also receive assistance anytime he encounters problems during teaching in class.

Mr. Sakara would like to encourage his colleagues in other schools to participate in the JUNEOS Challenge because it will improve their teaching skills and enhance the knowledge of their students.

Stay tuned by following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@wegoinnovate), Subscribe to our Youtube Channel and be informed!

Kofi Konadu Berko is passionate about education and youth development. He holds a B.A in Adult Education and Human Resource Studies from the University Of Ghana. His works have been  published in the historic Afroyoung Adult anthology titled Waterbirds On the Lakeshore, Adabraka: Stories From the Center Of the World, Tampered Press and the Kalahari Review. He blogs at obolokofi.wordpress.com