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PROMISED GIFT FOUNDATION READING IS 4 ME PROMO 2025 REPORT
- thelightinmeent
- 12 hours ago
- 8 min read
Ebenezer had a lot of difficulty learning. What he saw on the board, he drew as circles and squares, instead of forming the actual shapes of the letters onto the paper in front of him; to write was a challenge. His teacher tried his best to help improve Ebenezer’s academic ability, but to no avail. Frustrated, he called on the Lord: “Dear Jesus, help me to help my learner. I just don’t know what to do!”
That night, the teacher had a dream. In that dream, he saw himself at the board. He was given the key to open the struggling mind of Ebenezer for him to overcome his learning deficits and progress faster. The teacher was so excited, he hurried to school the following morning and met his disgruntled learner in the classroom. “Today is the beginning of better days ahead of you, my son.” The learner met his teacher’s smile with his own.
Not all children learn the same way. Words such as “inclusion”, “mainstreaming”, “mental retardation”, “above-average”, “gifted-and-talented”, “average”, “below-average”, “special education”, “regular education”, “learning disabled”, “deficits” (attention, perceptual, metacognitive) “disorders” (hyperactivity, aggression), “at-risk”, “advanced placement”, “cluster grouping”, “one-on-one”, and so on, are bounced around the educational arena hitting the heads of learners as well-intentioned educators and parents search for the right placement for the highest cognitive and academic achievement; and therefore, the brightest futures for their learners.
I have witnessed five-year-olds accelerated to second grade (primary two) classrooms as well as learners with some cognitive deficits sitting next to the “above-average” or “gifted” ones in the same cooperative learning group (inclusion). These placements can have either beneficial or detrimental effects on the learner. Each case is unique.
For instance, if a learner is skipped to a higher class (or grade) too early, he or she may miss (or lack) certain fundamental foundational skills in a specific area, especially language (literacy) and mathematics (numeracy) acquisition skills. That same child may also experience socialization issues later as he or she does not reach puberty at the same time with his or her classmates, thereby being ostracized as “still a baby” among his or her adolescent classmates.
If a learner with a learning challenge, however, is paired with or joins a group of academically high achievers, they can help that learner build up and significantly strengthen his or her cognitive skills. In fact, that learner feels increased self-worth (confidence) and is motivated to do his or her best because he or she is being encouraged by the “smart” scholars to be “smart” like them: “I am smart, too” becomes their inner speech. These gifted students also feel happy to help because it increases their confidence as they see the success of a fellow classmate “getting it.” They feel like victorious teachers. They even sound like a teacher and role-play as teachers (reciprocal learning technique) when teacher isn’t around; but in a good way.
Whatever the case may be, there is no one universal way to group—include, exclude or segregate—learners. Each learner is individually packaged; and educators must do their best—without prejudice and stigmatization—to position their learners in the right “place” for optimal beneficial (or positive) education (receiving/assimilating information) and learning (applying information with expected results).
With this in mind, Promised Gift Foundation, a registered Ghanaian charity, has developed a Literacy Program called READING IS 4 ME Literacy Promo challenging children and teens to read at least 4 books per month through our I-D-E-A-L Teach Me English! Literacy Curriculum. In 2025, we brought this Promo to Upper Primary (Grade/Class 4, 5, and 6) learners who met after school to strengthen their English Language Literacy skills of reading, writing, listening, speaking, and comprehension. A total of 12 learners participated from the SDA Primary School, a public school in Kumasi, Ashanti Region, Ghana-West Africa with Mr. Benjamin Sarfo, Headmaster.
This school was selected because of Teacher/Facilitator Madam Fidelia Duah-Prempeh, a nominee for the nationwide Ghana Teacher Prize (GTP) 2025. After acclimating her to the E-A-L approach to literacy instruction, her years of professional teaching experience made her a model teacher in providing young people with experiential learning facilitating their own innate ability to construct knowledge and to store that knowledge for future usage. From her classroom environment to teaching methodology, Madam Fidelia portrayed exactly what every learner needs for optimal beneficial, or positive, education and learning.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) further defines literacy as the ability to identify, understand, interpret, create, communicate and compute (numeracy), using printed and written materials associated with varying contexts. Literacy involves a continuum of learning in enabling individuals to achieve their goals, to develop their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their community and wider society. It is the responsibility of Mentor-Teachers to polish their professional teaching-learning skills to raise up young people who are equipped to succeed with literacy/numeracy skills in this "global village."
The learners selected were those who had experienced the most challenges in acquiring and applying English Language skills with reasons beginning from those having difficulty in constructing cognitive links to help strengthen long-term memory to those speaking more than one language fluently already and have to add English to their literacy skills. In one case, the learner speaks two languages in his home other than the one spoken in the general society and school in which he now attends. Atop of that, he must grasp the English Language which is the country’s official language, forcing him to be fluent in four languages at the age of 11 years!
The learners began the Literacy Promo with a simple diagnostic dictation with very poor results and ended the Promo with the same assessment. During the two days after school each week, learners would be given a brain-boosting nutritional snack before commencing their hour-long studies in experiential learning within a positive learning environment. What was startling was that after 10 weeks, those that seemed “hopeless” scored between 80-100%. What is most critical is their ability to retain the knowledge they constructed inside their long term memory so as to build up to acquiring and utilizing more complex English literacy skills. The real "test" for these scholars was that, after completing this 10-week Promo, they later attended their regular classes for the next 12 weeks without participating in the Promo. After interviewing their Class Teachers about their progress, all affirmed that these scholars had dramatically improved from before they participated in the Promo.
I went round to observe each of them interacting with their classmates during instruction. In most of them, I observed a greater inner confidence for class participation; and Class Teachers inquired if the Promo can go on with other learners. That can be done with more funding from you, our readers.
The READ4ME Pilot Program was a huge success:
“Before, I hated reading, but now I like reading.”
Class 5 Learner (scored 0% before, and 80% after)
PGF extends a great appreciation to the Headmaster of SDA Primary School Mr. Benjamin Sarfo and to the Parents of the learners for permission to work with their gifted learners. We are most grateful to the tireless dedication and enthusiasm for teaching and reaching and pulling out the cognitive potential in every learner found in Madam Fidelia\s instructional culture which claims, "Everyone can do it."
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF PROMISED GIFT FOUNDATION
extend our most heartfelt gratitude to
for making this READING IS 4 ME PROMO a reality in the lives of young people
who are now equipped for academic success.
For information about how to activate antecedents of learning and up-skill proficient generic skills within PGF’s Literacy Curriculum, enroll in PGF’s Online or On-Site Accredited CPD Training Academy and transform all your learners into scholars of academic excellence!
© 2026 by Patience Osei-Anyamesem. All rights reserved. Published by The Light In Me Enterprise. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews or other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
The artwork depicted in the blog article is carefully selected to draw out the points made in the text, and by no means promote any ideologies from the various artists unless they are found in the center of God's perfect will.
Patience Osei-Anyamesem is, by profession, an Instructional Design & Training Consultant and, as a trained classroom teacher, has taught young people and older people over the course of 30 years the subjects of English, Mathematics, Science and Computing, and Etiquette globally and in Ghana as the first Headmistress of Global Village Christian Academy Int'l School in Ashanti Region; and, prior to that, served as the first Headmistress of Victory Academy International School in Eastern Region, both founded by her late father, Rev. Peter Osei-Anyamesem.
As such, throughout her career and in her current role as a Children’s Ministry Regional Director in Assemblies of God, Ghana, she has trained approximately 1,000 Mentor-Teachers in the CPD Standards Office (United Kingdom) Accredited Course Models of Learning. She is author of Multiplying Our Children's Church with “Real Talk” Models of Learning: Application of Wholistic Christ-Centered Education for the Home, School and Church; of the internet blog you are now reading, Take My Hand Inspirations: Conversations with the Soul; and the biannual editions of “Real Talk” Teaching Tract Curriculum Series for the training, development, and welfare of children and teens.
Patience Osei-Anyamesem has also authored “My Cup Overflows” storybook collection and a repertoire of children's plays including The Power of Purity, Christ-the Light of the World, and award-winners: So Eat Mama's Banku and Okra Stew! and Send Your Girl-child to School.
As part of her children and teen literacy up-skill campaign, she designed, published, and trains the Teach Me English! Language Pedagogy and Curriculum for home, private, and public schools.
Explore the store and see her works. You can DONATE to the design and creation and/or publication of these products and services and BUY the materials to enhance the lives of young people and their mentor-teachers.
Mentor-Teacher Patience is available for helping you reach out and positively touch the lives of children and teens in your homes, schools, and churches through speaking engagements, teen summits, seminars/symposia, and camps. Stay posted for activities and events for participation of your children and teens! You can contact her by clicking on the comments bubble and text your request. Let’s get steppin’ into positive education as we build our teaching legacy for future generational godly leaders!
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