The Case for Teacher Participation in Development1

The first teacher training institutions appeared in English-speaking West Africa in the late nineteenth century. The teacher-catechists were indeed a hardy lot who, after home formation, had to fend for themselves in rural areas under extremely adverse conditions with little or no salary. Most of the national teacher associations in English-speaking West Africa began in the 1920s, although in Sierra Leone they trace their origin to before the turn of the century. National planning or development planning and its sectoral components, which include education, were introduced into Africa about fifteen years ago. Thus, a by-product of the planning process was the short-term expert sent by almost every United Nations agency, by governments carrying out bilateral assistance, as well as by voluntary groups, in a well-intentioned effort to aid Africa. By the early 1970s there was little doubt that a new breed of national civil servant was gaining control of the whole African establishment.