Thursday , March 28 2024

GOVERNMENT SHOULD SUSPEND SHS DOUBLE-TRACK SYSTEM

The Ghana National Education Campaign Coalition (GNECC) wants the government to suspend its ongoing process to implement the double-track system at the senior high school (SHS) level.

At a press conference in Accra yesterday, Executive Council Chair of the GNECC, Bright Appiah, stated that, the coalition said the fact that a similar system worked in the United States, Japan and Germany, does not guarantee the success of the policy in Ghana because those countries are advanced countries

The Coalition, made up of 360 institutions, has proposed to the government to test the system for at least a year before rolling it out nationwide.

“No country has ever implemented a free SHS policy where 70 per cent of students were boarders. In fact, the best practice worldwide is the day school approach to free secondary education.

The Coalition propose to the government , “A 70 per cent day and 30 per cent boarding system will reduce the cost of financing secondary education by at least 50 per cent while reducing the pressure on existing infrastructure”.

The Double-Track System is aimed at reducing the congestion that came along with the Free SHS in secondary schools, to ensure quality education.

The double year-round system also divides the entire student body and staff into two different tracks. So while one track is in school, the other is on vacation.

The rotation sequence will depend on the year-round calendar being used. In Ghana, the school calendar starts from September and ends in April with three different terms. The first term is from September to December; the second term starts in January and ends in April while the third term is from April/May to July.

Moreover, every semester will be 80 days for the two tracks. For one semester, every track will be in school for 40 days then go for a break for 40 days. Teacher motivation has been increased from 20 hours for the year to 70 hours for the year. Teachers will be increased so every group goes on break with the track they teach.

However, the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) wants the government to proceed with caution by consulting stakeholders in education.

The timetable for the SHS double-track system will be out by next week.
 

By: Rita Gyenkel/pinkfmonlinegh.come

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