Ghana plans to develop education policy for Ghanaian Sign Language — MyJoyOnline

Ghana plans to develop a long-term state policy on the development and use of Ghanaian Sign Language in the education system. Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu said the ministry would work with stakeholders to officially recognize and institutionalize the language, MyJoyOnline reports.

Support for education of deaf students

The minister announced the plans during a dialogue on strengthening quality multilingual inclusive education for deaf students, held in Accra. According to him, the new policy is intended to address one of the key issues in education for deaf people in the country.

Iddrisu noted that for many deaf residents of Ghana, sign language is not only a means of communication but also a language through which they express themselves, shape their identity and participate fully in society. He added that the policy must align with Ghana's constitutional, legal and international obligations, as well as be evidence-based and grounded in the principles of inclusion.

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Eight areas of the future policy

Among the areas the document will cover, the minister named the standardization and development of Ghanaian Sign Language, as well as the documentation of relevant terminology, including academic and scientific vocabulary. The policy will also provide for the preparation of teaching materials and the training and certification of sign language teachers and interpreters.

In addition, it is planned to include sign language competencies in relevant teacher-training programs and ensure the recruitment and deployment of properly trained specialists. The initiative is to provide for accessible assessment practices, the development of bilingual and multilingual approaches to teaching deaf students, and systematic monitoring of their learning outcomes.

The Ghanaian government supports an approach under which deaf students will develop foundational skills in Ghanaian Sign Language and gradually master written English and other languages important for their communities and further education. Iddrisu stressed that the measure of success should be not only enrollment rates of students with disabilities in schools, but also their ability to learn, read, communicate, and acquire mathematical and digital skills.