The Minister of Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh has admitted that the double-track system which was introduced to resolve some challenges associated with the flagship Free Senior High School Policy is one of the complex killer problems his Ministry is currently facing.
According to him, he does not get headaches from the problems associated with the Free Senior High School as they are technical which require a good manager to handle, but the same cannot be said of the double track, TVET Reforms and 19 Bills which are about to be piloted in Parliament.
“People will see education as very complex but you have to break it down to management decisions, if you have to deal with the technical problems and then really complex killer problems like double-track and TVET Reforms and about 19 bills we are about piloting in Parliament; those are the complex killers,” he admitted.
He stressed that “the Free SHS’s are technical problems and they don’t give me headaches; the double-track is a complicated problem, I have to think, but the Free SHS is a technical one which any good manager can do.”
Addressing a gathering at the Danquah Institute's Leadership Series as the main speaker on the theme “World Class Education An Imperative For The Next Generation Of Leaders”, Dr. Opoku Prempeh disclosed that the double-track is a complicated problem which advanced planning is required and infrastructural building needed to start.
“The double-track is a complicated problem which you need to plan ahead and start the infrastructural building, and the TVET Reform is a killer; we are still even negotiating with donor partners for their support. So that is when you are entrusted in education field,” he confessed.
He however mentioned that in spite of the complicated nature of the double track, the Akufo-Addo government is determined to make quality education accessible to all Ghanaian children irrespective of their socio-economic backgrounds.
Double-track system modalities
Education Minister, Dr Mathew Opoku-Prempeh, at the beginning of the programme said that only 400 out of the estimated 670 SHSs would run the double-track system for the 2018/2019 academic year, with the system expected to ease congestion in classrooms.
It is believed that over 8,000 teachers are being recruited to handle the sandwich classes so that teachers would not be deprived of their holidays.
Under the new system, teaching hours are due to increase from six hours per day to eight hours per day.
Teaching hours are expected to increase from 1,080 hours per year under the current trimester system to 1,134 hours per year under the proposed double-track system.
The new system is expected to cost GH¢323 million for the full implementation.
Accordingly, about GH¢267.2 million of this amount would cover teaching costs and GH¢55.8 million for academic interventions.
The controversial double-track system, which seeks to ease congestion in public senior high schools (SHSs), commenced on September 1, as first-year students reported to their various schools.
Source: Daniel Adu Darko/Peacefmonline.com/[email protected]
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. |
You toil with Ghana’s education. Anything that comes your mind overnight you rush to implement. Education is a very sensitive area that needs lots of consultations and careful thoughts. Today we don’t cane children, another day we don’t repeat, teachers must provide a comfortable place for pregnant children to relax. What’s this? I am getting to be convinced that we don’t need education ministers again. Let GES and NCTE have free hands to manage our education for us, period!
he said you need to "think ahead", its obvious they didnt do alot of that. they just jumped into it. all these people defending double tract are putting pressure behind the scenes on the heads of their former schools not to accept more students so they don't run double track in their schools. hypocrites. they will just destroy public shs like the syto schools
The title is quite misleading. The title portrays that the minister has given up, but the contents are quite far from that. These kind of challenges are the very reason why (P)NDC, for 28 yrs of rule, have never succeeded in implementing even one national-level social intervention program for the people of Ghana. They stand afar, envision the challenges and walk away! C.o.w.a.r.d.s!! On the opposite end is the NPP: they will foresee the challenges and venture into it anyway, believing that as a people, we can collectively solve these challenges along the way. Although the extremes of this 'venturing' may not be prudent, it has still given us NHIS, F-SHS, MMT, etc. As institutions, we are supposed to be polishing them as we go along, solving the problems that arise. I think this is good governance, because ''wo te faako a, wote woadeɛ so''. Lets rally support for all problematic ventures of NPP to make them work, rather than support NDC's 'sit-still' attitude that will let the natural population outgrow Kwame-Nkrumah era policies.
FIX IT FIXEEE IT NOW .THAT IS YOUR JOB.YOU MESSING GHANAS FUTURE FIX IT.
Truth can never be hidden. JM posterity is judging you and you are being VINDICATED. GOD IS IN CONTROL
The headline is misleading.
But i thought JM build more schools. mason president JM
You go talk True. Who cause am? Fix it
Now you know that you need to plan infrastructure development first? I salute JM
The truth is not yet out. But time will tell