By: Yunus S Saliu
Over eighty teachers who attended the Dissemination of Comprehensive Health Education Midline Research Findings held on Tuesday at the NaNA Conference Hall in Bakau have made some recommendations that can further enhance the implementation of the Comprehensive Health Education (CHE) project in The Gambia.
In its third year, the CHE project has become a household name and lecture that both in-and-out of school adolescents even adults are always looking forward to its message. It is an implementation research project done by the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education with funding from the International Development Research Center (IDRC), Canada to strengthen access to quality Comprehensive Health Education in The Gambia.
The converge with the 86 teachers selected from 43 different private and public upper basic and senior secondary schools, on Tuesday, 10th October 2023 was a continuation of the Dissemination reports of Comprehensive Health Education Midline Research Findings started on 24th July 2023 under the CHE project. The participating teachers were those teaching Biology, General Science, Home Economics, Health Science, and Physical Health Education, and teachers coordinators.
Speaking on behalf of Momodou Jeng, Director of Curriculum Research Evaluation and Development Directorate (CREDD) at the Ministry of Basic Senior Education (MoBSE) was Mr. Michael Hamadi Secka.
He welcomed the participating teachers to the forum while he encouraged them to make meaningful suggestions that would allow the project to meet its goals.
Mr. Secka dilated on the importance of the midline research findings to the CHE project and the Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education.
He disclosed that some of the participating teachers were involved in the development of the curriculum to raise their voices as well as their recommendations.
Meanwhile, he said CHE didn’t come from the blue thus in the past, there was POP/FLE but was not examinable and sustainable, “therefore, it was thrown in the dustbin.”
Let the narrative be changed, he said, “Comprehensive Health Education can be taught by involving the children, by asking them questions because we have the conviction that teachers can do it because you have the patient, ability, and the qualifications.”
However, teachers, after the presentations of the midline reports research findings presented by the presenters – Phebian Ina Grant Sagnia, the Principal Investigator of the CHE project, and Dr Thomas Senghore the teachers expressed their satisfaction about the presented reports and made some valuable recommendations.
These recommendations include setting aside a specific day(s) in a week to discuss CHE for at least quarter minutes at school assembly; parents and teachers should be bold enough to discuss with their students/wards; inviting teachers and parents to CHE radio talk show programs, religious leaders especially the Imams and Priests should be able to discuss this in their sermons at the mosques and churches, organise CHE debates in schools for better participation of students among lots of recommendations.