The attached SOS message sent from the Conference of Heads of Assisted Secondary Schools (CHASS) to the government through the Ministry of Education, once again, comes to vindicate the position of John Dramani Mahama and the NDC, that the FSHS policy is facing debilitating implementation challenges.
As contained in the letter, parts of the contents say emphatically, that schools are at their wits end, making it extremely difficult for administrators of these schools to manage the systems effectively.
The tone and content of the letter should give every Ghanaian, and give parents with wards in our secondary schools, grave concerns and worry.
Yet, the NPP government and Mahamudu Bawumia don’t seem to care.
The CHASS letter is dated November 13th, 2024. And my sources make further disclosures, that no headway in resolution has been made to issues CHASS has chronicled. If the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government cared, action could have been taken on issues raised to effect, by now.
John Dramani Mahama, unlike Mahamudu Bawumia, will not inflate FSHS enrollment figures by over 2.5 million to feign success. And neither will students in our secondary schools be fed unwholesome food under John Dramani Mahama.
Like many Ghanaians, including stakeholders in the education sector, such as CHASS, NAGRAT, EduWatch, IFEST, Students and Parents, John Dramani Mahama and the NDC, hold the firm belief, that the FSHS policy is a good policy; but has serious implementation challenges under the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia NPP government.
Cognisant of the above challenges, and after engaging stakeholders, such as CHASS and NAGRAT on secondary education, the next John Dramani Mahama NDC Government will:
1. Abolish the obnoxious double-track system to restore a stable academic calendar;
2. Provide a dedicated and sustainable funding source for quality secondary education by ring-fencing a percentage of our oil proceeds;
3. Embark on an emergency infrastructure drive to complete abandoned E-blocks and expand infrastructure in existing SHSs and TVET institutions;
4. Decentralise the procurement of food and other basic supplies, ensure timely food supply, and improve the quantity and quality of food for students;
5. Extend FSHS to cover students in private Senior High Schools;
6. Integrate the operations of the Free SHS Secretariat into the Ghana Education Service (GES) to efficiently implement the policy;
7. Reform secondary education curricula to integrate STEM, agriculture, vocational skills, digital literacy, civic education, design thinking, and life skills into secondary educational outcomes;
8. Introduce specialized Artificial Intelligence labs in selected secondary schools across the sixteen regions;
9. Continue our policy of provision of free laptops/tablets for SHS students;
10. Forge partnerships for the efficient delivery of secondary education, including restoring the role of Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs) and old student associations;
11. Strengthen government partnerships with religious bodies in managing mission schools;
12. Upgrade existing ICT laboratories and establish new ICT laboratories in Schools without same to promote digital literacy;
13. Expand digital libraries to enhance access to global teaching and learning materials for both teachers and learners;
14. Expand Science Resource Centres (SRC) across the regions to support STEM/TVET education;
15. Review the Computerised School Selection & Placement System (CSSPS) to address corruption in school placement, and make it merit-based;
16. Implement a policy to upgrade selected secondary schools across the sixteen regions into Grade A schools; and
17. Conduct an infrastructural audit to identify gaps and invest in targeted infrastructure to enhance access and quality of education.
John Dramani Mahama has a proven track record in the area of education and can be trusted to deliver on these promises.
Dr. Clement Abas Apaak,
MP/PC, Builsa South, Deputy Ranking Member on Education Committee of Parliament and NDC2024 Spokesperson on Education