Deputy Education Minister Fumes Over History Textbook Denigrating Christianity In Ghana

The Member of Parliament for Assin South Constituency and also  Deputy Education Minister, Reverend John Ntim Fordjour, is not pleased with the content of the controversial history textbook published by Excellence Publications, which denigrated Christianity in Ghana.

He described the content of the book as appalling and misguided.

The textbook, titled “History of Ghana for Basic Schools – Learners’ Book Four”, painted Christendom in a negative light. This angered many people in Ghana, and many took to social media to condemn the textbook.

The Publishers were later instructed by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) to immediately recall the textbook from the market.

In its statement, NaCCA explained that the content in the published book does not accurately reflect the approved curriculum.

In a tweet, Ntim Fordjour, who is also the Member of Parliament for Assin South, applauded NaCCA’s swift action to recall the books and called for the application of sanctions.

“I condemn entirely the rather obnoxious content found in a textbook published by `Excellence Publications’ and smuggled into the market for unsuspecting learners. The content is appalling and misconceived. I support NaCCA’s swift action to recall the books and apply sanctions. Ghana is most peaceful for a reason, and the important place of religion cannot be undermined,” the Deputy Education Minister tweeted.

 

I condemn entirely the rather obnoxious content found in a textbook published by ‘Excellence Publications’ and smuggled into the market for unsuspecting learners. The content is appalling and misconceived. I support NaCCA’s swift action to recall the books and apply sanction.… pic.twitter.com/yG89GA0XUv

— John Ntim Fordjour MP (@NtimFordjour) May 25, 2023

 

 

This comes after some parents raised concerns about the contents of the history textbook.

In the book entitled History of Ghana for Basic Schools, authored by Francis Benjamin Appiah and Henry David Appiah, a section lists some points as the negative effects of Christian missionary activities.

The points listed including ‘Christianity has led to an increase in poverty in Ghana and also stating that religion is a major cause of physical and doctrinal disputes in Ghana, did not sit well with many parents, igniting a debate on social media.

 

This has ignited a debate with some parents expressing worry about how a book approved by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) portrays religion and Christianity.

Some experts from Eduwatch and the Institute for Education Studies (IFEST) have also raised concerns about the book’s approval by NaCCA.

Eduwatch’s Programmes Director, Divine Kpe said the purpose of that section of the book is to enable students to generate ideas for debate on the effect of European missionaries in Ghana.

“When you look at the basic 4 curriculum for Religious and Moral Education, that particular objective for which the authors are writing to is about the pupils debating the effect of Christian missionaries or European missionaries in Ghana, some of their effects.

“So it’s actually expected to be a debate that the pupils were to have. In so doing, I think the authors were trying to generate ideas that the people can raise in terms of their debate,” he said on JoyNews’ AM Show on Thursday.

Mr Kpe, however, contended that there were inaccuracies in some of the points.

He also said the inaccuracies breached some standard NaCCA guidelines given to publishers who submit their books for validation. This includes the criteria of accuracy, currency of the content matter, and relevance of the content to the curriculum.

Mr Kpe criticised the authors for their subpar work and noted that the existence of such a book on the market was a result of NaCCa’s failure to fulfill its mandate.

But speaking on the same show, a Deputy Spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, Yaw Opoku Mensah asserted that the book in question was not the official one approved by the NaCCA.

He claimed that per the information provided to him by NaCCA, the approved version of the book did not have the section in question.

However, another panelist on the show, Executive Director of IFEST, Dr Peter Anti would not have any of those claims.

Dr Anti insisted that the book in question had been approved by NaCCA

“There is a published document of about 66 pages that lists all the books that have been approved by NaCCA and this document is there. It’s on page 56, so this book is approved,” he stressed.

Dr Anti added that the publishers should be placed on a blacklist by the NaCCA and given the appropriate punishment if, indeed, the book in circulation on the market was not the one that had been approved by NaCCA.

 

 

Listen to Divine Kpe, Yaw Opoku Mensah and Dr Peter Anti in the audio below:

 

 

NaCCA requests publishers of controversial textbook to withdraw it from market 

Meanwhile; the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NaCCA) says it has called for the withdrawal of the textbook, “History of Ghana for Basic Schools-Learners’ Book Four” whose content is causing an uproar on social media.

In a press release dated May 25, NaCCA indicated that the withdrawal is to allow for further checks and ensure that the issues raised with the content are resolved.

It stated that although the book from Excellence Series underwent the standard approval procedure, the content circulating on social media on ‘disadvantages of Christianity’ was not material they approved during the process.

They stated that the content is, thus, not the true reflection of what NaCCA approved.

NaCCA said the revelation therefore come as as surprise and stated that the material in question was not an approved content material by NaCCA.

The statement was signed by the Director-General, Prof Edward Appiah.

NaCCA added that “management of the Council has requested the publishers of the textbook to withdraw the material from the market until such time that issues with respect to the publication of the book have been resolved.”

NaCCA has urged the general public to continue to bring to its notice, any suspicious material in the market that may be deemed to have been emanated from NaCCA.

They noted that “NaCCA will not hesitate to sanction publishers who publish materials without recourse to the established protocols of the Council. We urge the public not to hesitate to contact our outfit for information on the right content and materials for use in our pre-tertiary schools.”

 

Read the full statement below:

 

 

 

 

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