A plea for people to be allowed to write teacher licensure exams more than twice.

The Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare, is calling for a more rigorous approach to the teacher licensure exams regime.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show, Mr Asare suggested that individuals should only be allowed to take the exam twice.

Mr. Asare further emphasised that the exam is designed to assess not only pedagogic skills and subject content knowledge but also literacy skills.

However, the education advocate believed that those who fail the exam for the first time due to lack of proficiency in the English Language cannot be given another opportunity.

According to him, if a prospective teacher cannot read and write good English at that stage of sitting for the paper.

“Once you demonstrate the incapacity to read and write or demonstrate low proficiency in the English Language that should be it. You cannot learn English in tertiary education, so that should be the end.

“…it is non-negotiable. We shouldn’t allow them to even write it for a second time,” he said on Tuesday.

Nonetheless, Mr Asare said the candidates who struggle with pedagogic skills or subject content may be given a second chance.

He noted that this would improve the standard of teaching in both public and private schools, ultimately benefiting Ghanaian children.

“So that we uphold the standard or improve the standard of the teacher and teaching in our schools, both public and private. So everyone should embrace the Teacher Licensure initiative because our children are those who will stand to benefit,” he explained.