Pastor Dickson
Sarpong-Tuffuor
Head Pastor, ICGC, Koforidua
The Anamoah-Mensah Committee report submitted to the previous government in 2000 strongly recommended that the three-year duration be maintained. One advantage of this recommendation is the fact that students will complete their education on time, while financial obligation on parents will be reduced significantly.
For some time now, I have realised that more Ghanaian students pass the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSSCE) than their counterparts in neighbouring West African countries.
A close examination of the four-year system shows that the first batch of students are in the second year and have just started with their elective subjects. So if the present system reverts to three years, the students will be required to write their final examinations next year, a situation that will impose severe pressure on them because they cannot complete the syllabi within the period.
On the other hand, if the first batch of students are allowed to complete the four-year duration, then we might as well continue with the programme.
I also know that the process of providing resources for the implementation of the present system was started by the previous government and teachers in the present educational reform. Furthermore, the syllabi for the new system have already been drawn and printed and state funds have been spent on the programme. Any change, therefore, will result in a waste of resources.
I remember clearly that when the SSS programme was first introduced, stakeholders complained that the quality of the graduates did not meet employment requirements. It is in this vein that I believe that students should be well grounded in the courses they are pursuing, particularly in English Language, Mathematics, Social Studies and Integrated Science.
As I understand it, syllabi for the four-year system have been structured such that students will be well equipped in the various subject areas. I submit that we should strive to have a stable educational system so that our children will not become handicapped in the future. I think the four-year system should be maintained.
Mrs Catherine Ablorh, Zonal
Manager, Graphic Comm. Group Ltd, Eastern and Volta Regions
Altering the current four-year duration is bound to disturb the educational programme and the students in general. For this reason, I think we must maintain the present duration to ensure the smooth flow of the educational calendar in the interest of our children.
Factors to consider in ensuring a smooth implementation of the system should include the provision of the needed logistics such as well-equipped science laboratories, expansion in infrastructure like classrooms and dormitories as well as improvement in the content of the syllabi in order to facilitate effective teaching and learning.
Some of the SHSs in the Eastern Region have overcrowded classrooms and dormitories, a situation that seriously undermines effective teaching and learning. I believe that if the necessary infrastructure is put in place and teachers are well motivated to teach, it will go a long way to support the current educational system including the large intake of students.
Another highly essential point to consider is the availability of the right textbooks in the right quantities and other relevant teaching and learning materials to the various SHSs across the country.
As I see it, sticking to the four-year programme will provide students enough time to study and revise before going for their final examinations, in contrast with the unbearable pressures they were made to go through under the three-year programme.
As part of efforts aimed at ensuring that teachers are in a position to make a positive impact on their students, more opportunities should be given them to enable them to upgrade their knowledge and skills.
Personally, I think reverting to the three-year programme may not serve the interest of developing and implementing a smooth academic calendar for our students who are our future leaders.
Mr Sampson
Donkor, Eastern Regional Manager,
Ghana Tourism Board
In my opinion, the present educational system must be changed. My reason for saying this is that, first of all, we do not have the necessary infrastructure and logistics that correspond to the four-year duration which has seen more student intake in almost all the SHSs across the country.
Secondly, even if we had the resources, have we considered housing for basic schoolchildren who are sitting under trees and in the open spaces to learn? If the nation has resources, I think we should rather consider putting up suitable structures for such unfortunate schoolchildren as well as accommodation for teachers as these steps would go a long way to enhance teaching and learning.
I believe also that emphasis in education should be placed on practical teaching (as opposed to theories) which, I believe, can help to develop the life skills of students.
For instance, subjects that teach customer care and disaster management should be included in school curricula as these will have a positive impact on our development as a nation.
We study certain subjects in school that we never really apply in our lives as we grow. I remember during my school days in the 1970s, there was plenty of time to engage in informal activities such as sports. But these days there is so much pressure on our pupils and students that there is no time for them to develop their skills and talents.
I think the three-year duration is enough. The extra year, as pertains in the present system, should be used to provide practical education outside the classroom to enable students to come to grips with real-life situations.
I believe that emphasis on book knowledge alone throughout the four-year duration is not the best. Real learning comes from learning and experiencing things about life outside the classroom.
Dr Obeng Apori,
Medical
Superintendent,
Eastern Regional Hospital
I would like to advise the new administration to hasten slowly with any new educational reform. The current four-year senior high school programme started barely two years ago. It requires that we evaluate indicators that address the positives and negatives of its implementation. This would help us understand the process better and enable us to make informed decisions as to whether a change is necessary or not.
It is my wish that the present system is not truncated, since the many changes in our educational system have not benefited our children. We should rather allow time for the first batch to complete the course and then we can assess the system for needed changes, if any.
The lack of infrastructure has been with us for a long time. However, with proper planning and implementation the academic performance of students under the present system could be improved to enable us to achieve the objectives set under the programme.
When the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) was first introduced, many people thought the initiative was doomed to failure because it faced many constraints. But with time, we have been able to identify and resolve many of the problems confronting its smooth implementation. Those who were against the scheme’s introduction now appreciate it.
This is why we must allow sufficient time for the new educational reform to enable us to determine its good and bad sides.
The argument that the current four-year programme should be scrapped because parents will incur extra cost due to the addition of one year is untenable. This is because even during the implementation of the three-year course parents had had to go the extra mile by employing part-time teachers for their children.
With the syllabus spread over a four-year period the need for such extra classes may be minimised as the students will now have ample time to study and revise for their final examinations.
A well-structured four-year programme with the needed logistics, and also well-motivated and dedicated teachers should produce students competent enough to compete favourably with their counterparts anywhere in the world.
As a nation we must endeavour to do away with the trend whereby anytime there is a change of government, there is also a corresponding change in all policies, including those on education.
Mrs Joyce Yalley
Nursing Officer
Eastern Regional Hospital
I think that the three-year period of SHS is preferable to the present four-year course, since the previous system has not been a failure.
Students who obtained good grades under the earlier system and proceeded to the university had done well and did not demonstrate any deficiency in their knowledge at the university.
The debate on the educational reform should be concentrated on the number of students who move on from the SHS to the tertiary level and those left behind as a result of their inability to obtain good grades in certain subjects.
We should consider why most of the well-endowed schools always obtain good passes, whereas it is the opposite for the poorly resourced ones.
In my opinion what makes Presbyterian Senior High School (PRESEC) different from Nkroful Agricultural Senior High or Half-Assini Senior High School lies in the fact that PRESEC is more resourced that these two SHSs.
Interested stakeholders should therefore mobilise the needed resources for the less endowed schools and provide them with well motivated teachers to enable them to equally live up to expectation.
We should also take steps to change the psyche of students in most of these less endowed schools, since such perception about themselves undermines their ability to perform and compete with their colleagues from the perceived 'better' schools.
I think the idea that students have more time to study under the present system is untenable as there were many students who passed their examination very well even without extra classes under the previous three-year programme.
We should gradually phase out the present system, but allow the first batch under the present four-year arrangement to complete their course, since they have been psyched up for the programme. Subsequent new batch of students should undertake the three-year programme. This will help us evaluate the outcomes of the two educational reforms in the future and assess the one which is better.
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