Teaching is a noble profession but the disgusting working environments of most teachers in rural parts of Ghana put many of such teachers in dangerous conditions which discourages their good intention of sacrifice.
Starr News’ Eastern regional Correspondent Kojo Ansah visited some eight teachers teaching in Akotoklo-Gua D/A Primary School in the Upper Manya Krobo District of the Eastern region.
The teachers after trekking almost four miles to school every day through the bushy route from Opemso are compelled to use clustered rocks under trees as Staff office due to lack of office accommodation.
The teachers have no chairs and tables, neither do they have a staff Common Room. The Teachers mark class exercises and conduct class activities from the rocks under trees. They sometimes have to battle with snakes and other dangerous reptiles that invade their place of solace.
The Teachers have to run for cover in homes of the scattered settlement area whenever it rains due to poor state of the bamboo shed classrooms.
Akotoklo community lacks access to road network hence the only means of transport is Okada bike which is very expensive due to the bad route and distance.
A round trip on Okada cost at least Ghc50 which the teachers cannot afford on their meagre salaries. Teachers after hectic walk, always get to school exhausted affecting their productivity.
Kennedy Okai, one of the Teachers at Akotoklo -Gua D/A School told Starr News, “this is our staff common room, the rocks of course, we do everything here, after walking for hours here.”
He added: “The teaching environment here is very bad, even where to defecate is a problem so we go to the bush with pupils, this palm fronds-made Urinal you are seeing was made possible by someone who came here to see the girls almost naked urinating in the open.”
The teachers are enduring the brunt of lack of basic social amenities such as potable drinking water, leaving them no other choice than to join others in drinking polluted water in the community.
The Chief of Akotoklo community, Dademankye Okum Peter said, the community has been dejected by government hence challenges confronting them continue to deteriorate deepening the poverty levels of the people.
He said the poor state of the School put up by the community is making it difficult for parents to enroll their children. He appealed to non-governmental Organizations and philanthropists to come to the aid of the community.
Source: Ghana/Starrfmonline.com/103.5FM/Kojo Ansah