The Deen of the Faculty of Integrated Development Studies (FIDS), Dr. Sylvester Galaa has stated that Children are the future capital of Africa, as such any activity that is geared towards Social and child protection assignment would be embarked upon by the university.
Dr Galaa said this whilst on a Six day Capacity building training on Child Protection project for the Faculty of Integrated Development Studies (FIDS) at the Damongo Catholic Guest house.
The project activities, according to him will be carried out by senior members and staff of the faculty.
The proposals, the baseline that will inform the level of awareness and attitudes of lecturers and students towards child protection, assessment of training needs of agencies and departments engaged in child protection, are all being undertaken by the members. he added.
He said these activities will feed into the curricular programmes of FIDS and the standalone programmes and as such issues of curriculum audit, design and delivery are central to the accomplishment of the programme goals and objectives. The project seeks to mainstream Child Protection Issues.
Being the first University in Ghana to embark on this , the FIDS is set to integrate into their curricula, Child Protection (PC) and Social project in the 2017/2018 academic year.
‘This project aims at integrating Child Protection Issues into FIDS curricular so as to make the Integrated Development Studies(IDS) curricular a purely integrated Development Studies Programme’. he pointed out.
There will also be ‘Standalone’ certificate programme to address the human capacity and training needs of agencies and departments championing Child Protection Issues in the Country.
Dr Galaa said UNICEF realized that the IDS was a very rich programme because students who complete the course have broad knowledge in almost all aspects of development, including social, environmental, political, historical, economic and entrepreneural issues.
UNICEF noted some deficiencies with respect to social work and child protection issues, hence their decision to help the institution to embark on the project.
The CP project will lead students to learn about foundational Child Protection issues, theory issues, rights and systems.
It will as well lead to auditing individual courses to see where CP knowledge can be effectively intended, assessing how CP knowledge can be integrated in a meaningful way throughout the curriculum, among others.
The University received consultants from Wilfred Laurier University in Canada who are working with FIDS on project, providing technical support, with the aid of UNICEF.
Magnus Mfoafo-M’Carthy, PHD(Associate Professor, Lyle S. Hallman Faculty of Social Work) , who was in Damongo, Ghana for the training, said irrespective of ones department or area of studies, it was necessary for the FIDS to get the basics for the CP project.
He said they first came to Ghana in December 2015. The trip was to assist FIDS senior members build consensus on framework or model of child protection to persue, discuss capacity building needs and planned activities for the project implementation.
He was hopeful that the CP project will travel beyond the two year implementation period. He said his institution was ready to provide assist to any university in the country to promote child protection and it’s related activities.
The Head Of Department for Department of African and General Studies, Dr Damasus Tuurosong said the CP project came at the right time. There is a big gap in Ghana when it comes to c understanding child abuse and other factors affecting the children.
To be a lecturer, one is not trained the basics of lecturing.
We are all used to the old methodology where the professor comes into the lecture room , stand before the students over a period to teach. There no induction or orientation courses given to lecturers in the tertiary institutions.
So this training is assisting us to learn the nwe ways of lecturing. It has equipped the senior members and staff of the university with how to find the exciting way of delivering to students.
He thanked UNICEF for chosing the UDS , Wa Campus, to begin the child protection project with and assured the UN agency that the University was all ready see to it that the programme will be successful.