The Nana Akufo-Addo-led government’s flagship Free Senior High School policy was rushed through, ace satirist and TV talk show host, Kwaku Sintim-Misa (KSM) has said, suggesting that it could have been properly planned for a year or two before implementation.
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) government implemented the Free SHS policy in September 2017. It allowed about 90,000 students who would not have had the chance to go to school, to do so. It covers the full fees of students who attend public Senior High Schools.
In the next academic year, the number shot up to 181,000.
Due to the increase in enrolment, the government introduced the double-track system to accommodate all the students.
The SHS double-track system is similar to the academic calendar used in the universities. With this system, each track will be in school for specific days for each semester and go on vacation and come back for the second semester. While the first track is in school, the second track will be on vacation and vice-versa.
Critics of the government, including former President John Dramani Mahama have said the policy will compromise the quality of education. He has, thus, promised to review the entire policy if he gets the opportunity to become president again.
Speaking on Class FM on Wednesday, 23 January 2018, KSM said although the Free SHS policy is a novel idea, it was implemented in a rush.
He said: “The whole idea or agenda behind free education is a novel one, it is needed. We need to get a certain aspect of the generation really educated, get them to think and I think the SHS level is where we can grab people and shape their minds.
“So, I’m just saying, overall, the idea of being able to educate this group of people freely is a novel one but I think the question is: are we ready? One can say: ‘Well, when are we going to be ready, let’s jump in and just take it from there’, but, I would have rather wished more planning had gone into it. It could have taken another year or two.
“Let’s plan and execute and do it well. Right now, I have a feeling it was rushed. I could be very wrong but this is my opinion. I just think that it was rushed. Many people may be benefitting from it but very soon, the next stream of students will be coming on board, and are we going to bring more additional tracks? It is something that’s needed but it’s something that needs time to be implemented and done very well. My general impression is that it seems rushed”.
Source: classfmonline.com
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@ Ntim, parents have always paid for extra classes for their wards. It did NOT start with free SHS. I remember way back in the days,the O and A levels system, the long vac used to be 3 months and over and man attended extra classes saaa the whole holidays 8am -6pm monday to saturday, otherwise you wont finish the 'syla'. Mind u,what many people seem to forget is that Sixth form was also free. Please remove extra classes from the arguments against free SHS (or double track); it's not a valid point at all. We are even told the students have more contact hours with the teachers under the double track if you carefully analyse and understand the system. Or is it not so?
So you were expecting thousands of Ghanaians whose parents cannot afford to pay the fees to stay at home and waste their God given talent.
Bam!!!! Kwesi, u said it all
Ntim I couldn’t agree with you more. I have a ward there and I can tell you he made 6 ones and got his first choice of school. The first thing he requested for for extra classes from ideal which I did and paid for. Whiles he was there I had to struggle to get the approved prospectus which even cost more than his fees if shs was not free. After that, we were told the government would support them with some books and I will complement but sorry I ended up buying all the note books he will need for taking notes, all the Core subject text books and all the elective science books and will keep sending him to private classes in order to ensure he doesn’t stay home for 2months doing whatever he wants because I am at work most of the week. As I talk to you both tracks are in school and sometimes the food on a table isn’t sufficient for all the members on the table but no head teacher can complain because their jobs are on the line. I wish this nice idea could just be thought out without the politics because I know I will support my ward in anyway I can to finish well. What of the poor who think it’s really free and doesn’t do anything to support their wards or can’t?
The claims that SHS is free is just a wild joke. Unless of course you want to leave your child who is on a 3-month vacation at home to have nothing doing. Serious parents who know the value of education are hiring teachers at 350 per subject to teach their children. So where lies in the free. Anything this government does even if it's not proper are pushed down our necks to accept. Political Power has expiry date. Even Kwame Nkrumah had his day of shame!
Please keep your mouth shut wai. You are no longer relevant in this country wai. You soiled your image when you decided to be political. Hitherto, some of us revered you but, sorry, not anymore. Remove your thick NDC goggles and look the hell around you well and you will realize how relieved parents and guardians are now. Find something else to say wai
look at another fish
rushed it was. a few party members disagree. the reality is that parents are paying for extra classes for the kids who are home, anyway. some parents are having to rent rooms for their teenage kids who are in these schools: apart from the cost of renting, the real cost of leaving a teenager on his own is truly glaring. in any case, these children are being sacrificed to make the policy better. it could have worked better the other way. it was rushed.
JOKER, GOVERNANCE IS NOT ABOUT STANDING INFRONT OF AUDIENCE AND MAKING THEM LOUGH. EVERY 111DIOT IS NOW TAKING
Are we ready? Tell us when Ghana will be ready for anything. If we want to be ready before we do anything we never will.