STAR-Ghana in collaboration with Daily Graphic, CDD-Ghana, SDG – Civil Society Platform Ghana, Joy Fm and Citi Fm held a National Dialogue on Education on Wednesday 15th August 2018 at the Kofi Annan ICT Center, Ridge, Accra. The dialogue was on the theme: “Unpacking the double-track system: Implications for sustainable financing and prospects for educational quality in Ghana”.
Welcoming participants to the dialogue, the Programms Director for STAR-Ghana Ibrahim-Tanko Amidu highlighted the importance for engagement for double track system and its implications for quality education in Ghana. He said that there is a need to figure out the way to get the educational system right because “after all has been said and done, more needs to be said and done”. He added that, there would be repercussions for not reforming and getting the system right as such there is a need for consensus building for constructive engagements so that changes in governance would not disrupt the educational sector which is fundamental to the development of the country.
The special guest speaker for the dialogue, Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, Deputy Minister of Education in charge of General Education gave an overview of the impeding double-track system to be implemented in the Senior High Schools in the 2018/2019 academic year.
He indicated that the double track system is an opportunity for a large majority of students to be enrolled in their school of choice. However, there is a need for further deliberations to make the system better. He added that the double track system is not a silver bullet but a silver lining to improve our educational system.
He noted that the rational for the project was because of the rise in the number of students entering senior high schools yearly, as against the limited spaces to accommodate all qualified students. The double-track system was designed therefore to reduce the congestion experienced by the various schools, increase contact hour and holidays for both student and teachers.
He said the government has instituted a policy where they will borrow funds from GETFUND to complete all the uncompleted building that was set up by the previous government. He added that there are 13 community day senior high school (SHS), popularly known as the E-block schools schools that will be opened at the beginning of the academic year and 15 private schools has been absorbed by government.
The General Secretary of NAGRAT, Mr Samuel Frank Dadzie in his presentation expressed NAGRAT’s support to the double-track system, however, questioned the kind of free senior high school (SHS) that the country wants to achieve with the introduction of the double track system. He highlighted that it will not be right for its members to work on weekends to support the free Senior High School (SHS) double track system because it is against the Labour law - "...in putting so much stress on the teacher, let's also think of quality. What kind of free SHS do we want?" he asked.
In his remarks, the acting Managing Director of the Graphic Communications Group Ltd, Mr Ransford Tetteh, said education was very critical and called for the need to speak to educational issues with the national interest devoid of partisan politics.
Dr Franklin Oduro, Director of Programmes at the CDD expressed delight at the fact that the forum was being held to give the public the opportunity to contribute towards the development of education in the country. The concern for CDD was how the government would assure the citizenry that the new educational system would enhance the quality of education in the country.
Mr Charles Tsegah, the former acting Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), in his remarks praised the government on the double track system but admonished the government on their inadequate consultations held prior to its implementation. He empahsied that there was a need for government to revert to the “cut-off” system for admitting students into the Senior High School to enable students that have high psycho-motor skills than cognitive attend the vocational and technical schools in the system and not do a “wholesale” approach.
The moderator Ace Ankomah indicated that if the government will become bankrupt due to education, that is; educating every Ghanaian child, it should go bankrupt because first it will reduce the propensity of corruption and every child will have equal opportunities in life.
He added that Ghanaians have all the solutions to the various issues they face in our various libraries in schools, research will be done and because there is no link/collaborations between the academic sector and the government/industries, we lose out of innovative ways to improve. He stressed on the need to have a linkage in these areas.
Key issues raised by participants at the dialogue included the source of funding for the implementation of the double track system, the abolishment of the cut-off point for admission of students into the “A” class schools, inclusive education among others.
It was attended by civil society organisations, stakeholders in education and media organisations.
The next dialogue will take place in Takoradi on Friday the 17th of August at Akroma Plaza at 9:30am with 28th and 30th August planned for Tamale and Kumasi respectively.
