All You Need to Know about NTC Courses and the Ones to Take; How to Register Each Course
Many teachers find navigating the NTC courses challenging and can become frustrated. These courses are designed to be beneficial and enhance your professional skills. This guide aims to clarify the NTC courses available for professional development (PD) points and their underlying rationale.
What are the Current Courses Available for All Teachers?
Currently, the following e-Learning portals offer courses:
- NTC E-LEARNING: https://elearning.ntc.gov.gh/ (Offers free courses for 15 and 16 CPD points)
- Instill Education: https://upskill.instill.education/ (Offers 3 new free online courses)
Additionally, current face-to-face courses include:
- UCC Course for CPD Points
- ICT Course for Teachers
Note: This information will be updated regularly. Join the Teacher Professional Forum for quick updates.
What is the Rationale for Introducing Professional Development Activities?
The rationale behind introducing PD activities is to guide teachers in continuously improving their competencies, maintaining the integrity of the teaching profession, and enhancing their professional status. It is expected that engaging in accredited PD activities will help teachers maintain and enhance the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and experiences gained after their initial training. It is crucial for teachers as professionals to preserve their professional integrity by updating their knowledge and skills to stay abreast of contemporary issues and approaches in education.
Which Category of Courses are We Supposed to Take?
The NTC Framework categorizes PD activities into:
- Mandatory: Essential for all teachers.
- Ranked Based: Specific to a teacher’s professional rank.
- Recommended: Further grouped by complexity and teacher involvement.
To meet the required PD points in a PD cycle, teachers at specific ranks must access activities from both Mandatory and Ranked Based Trainings. In addition, they need to select any of the categories within the Recommended Trainings.
NOTE: While you can obtain 100 points, you might not meet the criteria if you don’t take courses from each category. It is crucial to select courses from ALL categories.
Where Can I Access Trainings for My PD Points?
Teachers can access trainings from several sources:
- Employer (School Level):
- Professional Learning Communities (PLC): School-Based, Departmental-Based, or Cluster-Based.
- Community of Practice (CoP): Workshops for Heads of Institutions, School Improvement Officers (SIO), teachers of a particular subject or class (e.g., BS3, BS1, KG2), or teachers with common roles. These programs are mostly supply-driven.
- Teachers’ Portal: Teachers can use the portal to access demand-driven PD activities from Accredited Service Providers.
- Development Partners and NGOs: These organizations, working with the Ministry of Education, are certified to collaborate with District Education offices to provide supply-driven programs. NTC will collaborate with GES to monitor these trainings for quality assurance.
How Long Does it Take to Get the Required Points?
PD programs operate on a three-year cycle. Every registered teacher has three (3) years to earn the minimum credit points stipulated for their level/rank. This applies to teachers at all levels of the education system (public and private) and includes those in administrative positions. Teacher Continuous Professional Development activities can be accessed from either Supply Driven or Demand Driven sources, depending on availability.
Can I Do Courses from Only One Source?
No, teachers are not restricted to accessing training from only one source and are not obligated to access every paid PD activity. Demand-driven programs are those organized by Certified Service Providers.
How Many Trainings Am I to Attend if I Am at the Basic School Level?
Teachers at levels where the academic calendar operates for three terms (Trimester) can have a minimum of three supply-driven trainings per term, totaling nine (9) trainings per year and twenty-seven (27) per the 3-year PD cycle.
How Many Trainings Am I to Attend at the SHS Level?
Similarly, teachers at levels where the academic calendar operates for two terms (Semester basis) shall have a minimum of six (6) supply-driven PDs per semester, totaling twelve (12) per year and thirty-six (36) per the 3-year PD cycle.
Important Note: Training programs must be accessed proportionally from all training categories based on the PD point calculation, meaning trainings must be accessed from all categories.
Are Teachers on Study Leave Part?
Yes, teachers on study leave are also required to access the courses to build their points, as this contributes to professional development and is a requirement for license renewal, unless otherwise stated by NTC or GES. It is advisable to take the courses to be on the safer side.
What if I Don’t Need Promotion, Do I Still Have to Take the Courses?
Yes, you must continue to take the courses. As a professional teacher, you cannot rely on old methods that may no longer be effective. You must stay abreast of current methodologies and effective practices. Additionally, you need to renew your license, which requires accumulating these points.
How Long Does it Take for Points or Certificates to Reflect?
The reflection time for points or certificates varies. Some may be awarded within 24 hours, depending on the number of participants and workload. However, others may require manual marking of scripts and practiced samples, which can take longer.
How to Register for the NTC Courses
Every point you earn will be uploaded to your NTC teachers’ portal, known as the tpg portal. The login page is available at: https://tpg.ntc.gov.gh/account/login
Every teacher, whether in a private or public school, is expected to have an account on the Teachers’ Portal Page.
Institutions and organizations accredited to issue CPD Points and Certified Certificates include:
- UCC (University of Cape Coast)
- University of Education, Winneba
- Public Schools Teacher Unions
- Private School Teacher Unions
NTC E-LEARNING
NTC has its official e-learning platform at: https://elearning.ntc.gov.gh/. To take their courses, you need to register on the platform.
Other E-Learning Portals to Register
As mentioned earlier, other organizations are also mandated to provide courses for CPD points. When these organizations announce courses, you will need to find out the mode of registration directly from them.
After successfully registering and completing a course, the organization will provide your grades or acquired points to NTC to be credited to your portal.
Important: Not all courses grant points; some offer only certificates, while others provide both. It is crucial to keep your certificates as they are recognized by NTC.
Useful Link: https://tpg.ntc.gov.gh/account/login
Credit: NTC Teacher Professional Development.
JOIN OUR TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FORUM FOR ALL THE UPDATES AND DISCUSSIONS.