Social sciences and humanities training for Ghana higher education heads of departments to lead education for democracy

There is a gap in the knowledge regarding preparation Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) Heads of Departments (HoDs) require decolonising curriculums, thoughts and practice issues. This prevents HoDs leading their departments and professions for democratic education to deliver HEIs civic mission to mainstream new knowledge in the quadruple helix for sustainable health, economic, social and ecological wellbeing with and for the people. This study of sixteen HoDs in a Ghana HEI reveals before their appointments there was i) no HoD leadership preparation, ii) no prior discussion of professional or personal criteria mapping to a job description and iii) appointment was based on seniority and not leadership knowledge, skills and behaviours. HoDs with Postgraduate training in Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH), prior to appointment, knew how to mobilise democracy in education through learning communities’ participatory talk with and for their Departments and Professions. The talk built descriptions and understandings of psychologies, philosophies and ethics of trust required to support Education for Democracy to decolonise Departments and associated professions to deliver HEIs, National and African Union Strategic Plans. A Blueprint for Character Development for Evolution (ABCDE) is presented to prepare HoDs with HSS training needed for democracy in education.