Creating Moments of Learning In SHS Classrooms - A Pilot
Introduction
For those of us who work in education, there is nothing better than seeing that moment when a learner truly engages. When a fire is lit in their imagination. When a light is switched on, illuminating an idea or a concept that previously sat in darkness. As educators, we are all constantly trying to find ways of engaging, motivating, exciting and, ultimately, teaching our learners.
But we know that learning does not happen simply through the act of placing learners in a room with an educator and a set of resources. Thequalityof the learning experience is everything. The context for learning is vital. Just think of yourself as a learner – how many times have you sat in a training session and experienced that sense of engagement, of excitement. How many times have you really felt yourself truly learning? Rarely perhaps but you know when it happens because it can be transformative.
About this Research
Lead For Ghana and WhiteLoop Limited set out to explore what great teachers do to create great moments of learning. In schools across Ghana, teachers are being trained to adopt more progressive, active learning approaches – moving away from the rote learning and didactic models of the past. This is to be applauded and is undoubtedly reaping benefits across the school system. However, real challenges remain. Some teachers struggle to implement their training. Many classrooms are overcrowded – with the move to free senior high school driving up student numbers. Teachers often struggle with a lack of time and paucity of resources.
And yet within this context, we know that individual teachers are doing amazing (and sometimes very simple) things to bring learning alive and to create impactful moments of learning. In designing this research, we set out to find stories, anecdotes and examples of teachers who, despite the sometimes-challenging circumstances they face, are bringing learning to life.
In this pilot study, we worked with two schools – the Presbyterian SHS in Teshie, Greater Accra and Sokode SHTS in the Volta Region. The study engaged 162 students and 21 teachers through focus groups and interviews. Teachers were nominated by students as those who most brought learning alive and made lessons meaningful. Through our engagements, we uncovered some fascinating insights into how teachers approach their classroom practice and how they are implementing new ideas that engage and motivate learners.
Ultimately, our aim is to celebrate and champion the work of great teachers and to share their ideas and experiences as widely as possible so that, alongside the ongoing training and development they receive, they may see something that they can do that will help them to create compelling moments of learning in their own classroom.
The Headlines
There are so many good things happening in Ghana’s classrooms to both celebrate and learn from. Across the study, three themes emerged as critical to the creation of compelling moments of learning: the learning environment, peer learning, and instructional techniques. Together, these stories reveal that meaningful learning moments are rarely triggered by content alone - they emerge from emotional connection, relevance, and purposeful teaching practice.
Learning Environment
“I lead by example and demonstrate the behaviors, attitudes, and effort I expect from my students.”
“What I normally do is try to understand the background of each student… their personal story, home situation, learning style, culture, and experiences.”
Emotional safety is the foundation of effective learning - students cannot engage when they feel afraid or dismissed
Warm, approachable teachers who choose empathy over punishment see measurable shifts in student behaviour and performance
Key strategies that worked include:
"Star Lost or Earn" technique to channel disruptive energy positively
The Star Earn or Lose Technique is a behavior management strategy where students gain stars for positive actions and lose stars for disruptions, functioning as a visible reward–consequence system that motivates accountability and participation. It works because it redirects students’ energy toward positive behavior while reinforcing a shared goal of success.
"Let Them Know" . approach to build student responsibility
The “Let Them Know” Approach is a strategy that builds students’ sense of responsibility by clearly communicating goals, expectations, and timelines while encouraging self-reflection, functioning to promote ownership of learning. It works because it shifts students from passive compliance to active, internally motivated learners who take responsibility for their progress.
Giving students choice and voice to shift them from passive to active learners
Giving Student Choice and Voice is a strategy that allows learners to make decisions and express preferences in their learning, functioning to promote autonomy and engagement, and it works because it transforms students from passive recipients into active participants who take ownership of their learning
Teacher presence matters - how a teacher shows up emotionally determines whether students are mentally present or just physically in the room
When students feel seen, believed in, and safe, academic engagement follows naturally
Peer Learning
“They learn from one another since most of them work in groups, and this produces a kind of peer challenge. Once students see their colleagues getting it right, they also try to get it right.”
“Certain lessons that may not go down well with some learners are better explained by their peers, something we could term ‘in their own words’”
Learning deepens when it is social, practical, and connected to real life.
Lessons tied to students' everyday experiences - community events, local conflicts, familiar environments - generate genuine excitement and understanding.
Practical sessions are particularly powerful because students naturally observe, imitate, and challenge one another.
A "peer language" emerges that makes difficult concepts more accessible than teacher explanation alone.
Out-of-classroom activities broaden perspectives and motivate students to connect school content to the wider world.
Storytelling bridges curriculum and lived experience, sparking peer debate and deeper interpretation.
The strongest learning moments occur through student-to-student interaction, not teacher-led instruction.
Instructional Techniques
“Students’ attitudes and performances are influenced by their background, culture, and experiences.
Their minds respond to what they know.”
Effective instruction is reflective and evolving - shaped by personal history, learner needs, and context
"Saying, seeing, and feeling" - collaborative and project-based learning makes abstract content tangible
Practical approaches that proved effective include:
Audio-visual tools paired with active teacher interaction
Role assignment to create ownership and responsibility
Career-based grouping to spark motivation and curiosity
"Pause–Interact–Proceed" to keep learners mentally active
Knowing students as individuals - their backgrounds, aspirations, and circumstances - is a prerequisite for effective teaching
Student nicknames for teachers offer honest feedback on teaching style and pacing
The most powerful moments arose when high expectations were combined with genuine belief in learners
Across all three themes, a clear pattern emerges: moments of learning are fundamentally emotional before they are cognitive. When students feel safe, seen, and connected to what they are learning, they engage - and when they engage, they grow. The most effective teachers in this study were those who understood that their role extended well beyond content delivery.
In addition, the study highlighted some of the key drivers for teacher motivation, linking the capacity that educators have for creating moments of learning with their own mindset. Many teachers are motivated by a desire to give back to society – this is evident in their commitment to nurturing learners’ potential. They are passionate about helping learners to learn and grow and keen to find new ways to engage and motivate. Many teachers also have a strong sense of professional pride, wanting recognition for their teaching talent – this drives them towards adopting novel approaches and generates a desire to create compelling moments of learning.
The Implications
So what does this all mean? What are the implications of our research for how we might approach classroom practice? How can we all be part of creating compelling moments of learning?
For Teachers
Reflect regularly on your emotional presence - not just your lesson content - and consider how your tone, approachability, and belief in students shapes their willingness to learn
Prioritise creating emotional safety before academic challenge; engagement follows when students feel seen and supported
Experiment with peer learning strategies - practical tasks, group roles, and real-life connections - to let students learn from and with each other
Draw on students' everyday lives, community experiences, and aspirations to make lessons feel relevant and compelling
Pay attention to informal feedback, including how students respond to and talk about your teaching, as a signal for reflection and adjustment
For School Leaders
Recognise and celebrate teachers who create emotionally intelligent, student-centred classrooms - not just those who deliver strong exam results
Create space for teachers to share approaches and learn from one another, building a professional culture of peer learning that mirrors what works in classrooms
Support teachers' wellbeing and professional pride - motivated teachers who feel valued are more likely to innovate and invest in their students
Encourage out-of-classroom learning and contextualised teaching, and reduce structural barriers that prevent teachers from going beyond the textbook
Use teacher development programmes that go beyond content knowledge to include relational and instructional skills
For Policy Makers
Invest in teacher training that places emotional intelligence, learner-centred practice, and contextual relevance alongside subject knowledge
Recognise that meaningful learning cannot be reduced to curriculum coverage or test scores - assessment frameworks should reflect the broader conditions that enable learning
Fund and formalise out-of-classroom and experiential learning as legitimate parts of the curriculum, not optional extras
Design incentive and recognition structures that reward innovative, relationship-driven teaching practice
Use research like this to inform national pedagogy frameworks, drawing on what is already working in Ghanaian classrooms rather than relying solely on imported models
The overarching implication is the same: learning is a deeply human process. Policies, leadership decisions, and classroom practice all need to reflect the fact that emotional connection is not soft or secondary - it is the very condition that makes learning possible.
Next Steps
Having learnt so much from the two schools we have worked with on this initial study, we are keen to expand the research and find more great teachers who are creating compelling moments of learning. We plan to roll out this research across Ghana over the next year. We are therefore inviting partners, funders, and collaborators to support this next phase, enabling deeper research, wider reach, and the development of practical tools that can transform classroom experiences at scale. By investing in this work, stakeholders will contribute to strengthening teacher practice, enhancing student engagement, and shaping a more responsive and impactful education system in Ghana.
