…Rev. Alphonso B. Korleh Decries Education in Liberia
By G. Watson Richards
Monrovia—Rev. Alphonso B. Korleh, Head Pastor of Abundant Life Ministries (ALM) located behind the former Agriculture Ministry, now PMU office, has criticized the state of education in Liberia, labeling it as mere lip service.
In a passionate address at his Gardnersville office, Rev. Korleh, an educator with over twenty years of experience, condemned the education system for its persistent failures.
“Foreigners continue to win jobs and other opportunities over citizens because of this. Our schools and the learning process and results are so hypocritical,” Rev. Korleh asserted.
He emphasized that the inadequacies of the education sector are responsible for 90% of Liberia’s current problems.
Rev. Korleh described the education system as fundamentally flawed, producing graduates who struggle with basic literacy and communication skills.
“The majority of our current high school graduates don’t read well, can’t construct nor write correctly and easily, and can’t speak well in a formal gathering without grammatical errors,” he lamented.
He accused the government of neglecting the quality of education, criticizing the poor level of School Quality Assessment (SQA) supervision and the maintenance of unworthy institutions.
“These things are not grabbed by leadership. They only want the votes. But they don’t know that working on human capital is the greatest thing to develop this country. We can’t fix this nation unless we fix education,” Rev. Korleh stated.
Rev. Korleh, holding a master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Monitoring and Evaluation from the University of Education Winneba in Ghana and a Master’s in Regional Planning from the University of Liberia, highlighted several critical challenges facing the sector.
He called for an urgent overhaul of the national curriculum to align with global standards and the incorporation of technology and technical vocational education training (TVET).
“Our classrooms still struggle to get reading books and textbooks. The lack of visual learning aids is a problem. The vast majority of our students after high school end up becoming unskilled workers, unprepared for the job market due to the lack of basic computer literacy training,” he said.
Rev. Korleh identified overcrowded classrooms, overagedstudents, untrained teachers, and the absence of TVET as pressing issues needing immediate attention.
He also warned that the lack of skilled labor is allowing foreigners to take jobs and opportunities from Liberians.
Recommendations:
Rev. Korleh has recommended measures to be put in place by the national government and educational stakeholders aimed at improving the sector.
He wants the government to create a forum for ongoing discussion of educational issues nationwide and prioritize education reform to create more opportunities for young people to study education, providing subsidies to credible colleges and universities with teacher education programs.
He further recommended the establishment of a task force for education reform to support the Ministry of Education’s efforts, a national committee to revise the national curriculum through a collaborative effort of major education actors, and increased monitoring and supervision of schools in every county.
The passionate Liberian educator is also recommending that the national government sponsor and sustain capacity-building training for teachers nationwide.
Rev. Korleh expressed gratitude to international partners for their support in improving education in Liberia.
