Govt., EU launch “B” Certificate program for teachers

The Government of Liberia in collaboration with the European Union will today, Friday, 15 April launch ‘’B’’ Certificate program for 100 teachers in junior high schools across Liberia. The launch will take place at the Kakata Rural Teachers Training Institute (KRTTI) in in Margibi County, and will be graced by Vice President Joseph Boakai and the EU Ambassador to Liberia.

According to a press release, reactivation of the “B” Certificate program is a milestone on the path to strengthening the quality of teacher’s education in Liberia as there has been no active training programme for junior high teachers since the civil war ended here.

The 100 teachers from all 15 counties of Liberia are to benefit from the in-service training opportunity, including 25 females. It is hoped that in the future more teachers will benefit from the exercise. In line with the Agenda for Transformation and international education standards, the updated curriculum now includes cross-cutting elements, such as conflict sensitivity, promotion of gender equality, principles of inclusive education and good governance.

The new curriculum also addresses critical issues such as early marriage, teenage pregnancy, corporal punishment and stigmatization of Ebola victims. The training will include the Teacher’s Code of Conduct. The “B” Certificate curriculum is a two-year programme designed to train Junior High School teachers with subject area specialization, ensuring classrooms are filled with more qualified teachers.

The pilot reactivation was made possible through close collaboration between the Ministry of Education and the European Union. Between 2014 and 2015 the European Union supported the Ministry of Education with Technical Assistance to review the curriculum.

The Government of Liberia has allocated US$400,000 (four hundred thousand United States dollars) in the current fiscal year to support the pilot conducted by a national faculty team, with Technical Assistance provided by the European Union.

The EU is also providing support to build the capacity of the newly appointed Senior Management of the programme and faculty at KRTTI and supporting the Ministry of Education with capacity building to fulfil its leading role in the monitoring and evaluation of the pilot. In total, the EU has provided EUR 300,000 (three hundred thousand Euros) of support linked to the “B” Certificate reactivation.

Prior to the launch of the “B” Certificate programme, Liberian academics from Universities across the country, international subject experts and other stakeholders assembled in Monrovia in November 2015 to analyse and validate the drafts of the revised curriculum for Junior High teachers.

The Government of Liberia has disclosed plan here to outsource primary education under a public-private partnership as part of efforts to improve the educational sector. Press release