Mr David Oppong, Kumasi Metropolitan Director of Education, has charged pupils in basic schools to cultivate the habit of reading to sharpen their intellectual skills.
They should read more books to acquire knowledge to be resourceful in comprehending words and sentences to enhance their academic performance.
Mr Oppong was speaking to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Kumasi, on the sidelines of a reading competition organised for pupils in Basic one to three in the Metropolis to improve their reading behaviours.
The festival, under the theme “Learn To Read, Read To Learn,” was organised by the Metropolitan Education Directorate in collaboration with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
The aim was to encourage pupils at the basic level and whip up their interest in reading.
The pupils were engaged in spelling ‘Bee’ in English and the local language, reading, and pronunciation, among others.
Mr Oppong said the festival was also to select the best pupils to compete at the regional level adding that they could compete at the national level if they performed well.
According to him, reading was a foundational skill that was needed by pupils to be able to progress in academics, therefore, there was a need for them to take their reading seriously to enable them to broaden their horizons.
“Reading is the foundational skills that the children will need to be able to progress in the academic calendar, if you are able to read and understand, mathematics and other subjects become easier,” he noted.
He noted that helping pupils to read was a collective effort, therefore, he urged the parents and teachers to use good methodologies to encourage the pupils to cultivate the habit of reading.
The Director also appealed to the pupils to concentrate on their reading to improve their performance.
The USAID is the lead United States government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies to realize their potential.
For more than 50 years, USAID has supported Ghana in increasing food security, improving basic healthcare, enhancing access to quality education, and strengthening local governance to benefit all Ghanaians.
