The Association of Educational and Instructional Technologists, Ghana (AEITG) was on Wednesday inaugurated in Accra to help building education and learning pathway bridges through technology.

The AEITG will among others, create awareness, advance the use of technology, provide professional development, improve multi-and trans-disciplinary design and development through instruction.

Besides, the association will collaborate with global professional educational and instructional technologists while advancing academic, professional and personal development of AEITG members.

The Deputy Minister of Education, Rev John Ntim Fordjour, said institutions in Ghana were experiencing uncertainties with regards to moving towards a sustainable process of digital learning and teaching at all levels especially at the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.

He indicated that government was therefore embarking on an agenda on all sectors at the strategic and policy levels to ensure that education embraces digitilisation.

According to Rev Fordjour, the current demand for tertiary education as a result of Senior High School enrollment, adoption of electronic learning (E-learning) could increase access to tertiary education

He was of the view that e-learning could provide comparable access and quality education to all, when practiced effectively, and it could also help close the digital divide since many institutions in the country were hooked on to the internet.

“We are in a world that is fast changing, and its coming along with some challenges whose solutions demand that we cannot do away with digital resources,” Rev Fordjour stressed

The Deputy Minister said e-learning is not an option and that stakeholders in education had no option to adjust and shift methods in a way that teaching and learning was delivered.

 He said  it  was important  to ensure that  Information Technology Communication (ICT)  was not only a  subject taught in schools but  rather  translated into skill  that was acquired by the  learner adding that “  you need digital literacy to learn in this  world  and  there is no excuse as to the location of  study.”

Rev Fordjour said government was pursuing a number of reforms and sought to collaborate with the association to discuss the reforms that would be necessary in its quest to transform outcomes of education.

He said the reforms were aimed at realigning the foundation of the educational systems to sufficiently satisfy the dictates of the fourth industrial revolution.

 The president of AEITG, Dr Josephine Larbi-Apau,  said the association was embarking on a mission that would promote and implementation of educational   and instructional technologists in all sectors in both education and corporate organisations

 According to her, the association would focus on design development and management, open and distance education, virtual learning, teacher education, scholarships, student mentorship, corporate learning and training for both teachers and learners to enhance their capabilities.

Dr Larbi-Apau said learning today was not only influence by global trends but also by innovations adding,  that the association has the ability to influence learning outcomes by  advocating the right balance of infrastructure to support varied learning environment, the right balance of access to educational resources in all, right to physical and hands-on solutions.

BY JEMIMA ESINAM KUATSINU & GLORIA NSIAH MINTAH