Examining the Use of Folk Resources for Creative Arts Education in Ghana's Basic Schools

Implementing curricula that parallel children's cultural histories and language and Ghana Education Service's (GES) approved creative arts resources precipitated the need to review materials listed in the new national creative arts curriculum (2019). This study explores the availability, accessibility, and cultural alignment of creative arts materials and shows how using folk resources serves as an incentive for culturally sustaining resource development in Ghana's music and visual arts education. A semi-structured interview of six creative arts teachers revealed that while teachers use Ghanaian folklore-informed books on the market, schools have infrastructure needs and lack indigenous music instruments and visual arts materials for the new curriculum. Highlighting the quality and availability of folk resources, we recommend optimizing community human and material resources, engaging education research professionals and classroom teachers in dialogue, and monitoring and evaluating school programs.