“Idle hands are the devil’s workshop; idle lips are his mouthpiece. An evil man sows strife; gossip separates the best of friends. Wickedness loves company—and leads others into sin.” – Proverbs 16:27-29 (TLB)
GES in attempt to respond to the fears raised as a result of the semester system and the text which says that idle hands are the devils workshop, has hurriedly claimed they will monitor students off the class room via periodic phone calls.
I must be quick to point that monitoring a man in the devils’ workshop, you have to brace yourself for false feedback and possibly shocks.
It is undeniable that the vacuum created by the policy has yet to be analyzed and addressed and to be given the necessary attention by government and the stake holders of our educational system.
“And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.” – Luke 19:13(KJV)
In the parable above, the master ensured that the servants get busy in his absence, hence giving them the necessary resources to engage them.
These two biblical references speak to the essential need to managing any idleness in life, which in this context is the LONG VACATION OFF SCHOOL IN SHS.
History has it that the Compulsory National Service Scheme in Ghana was introduced to cater for a similar void that engulfed the nation at a point in when there were not enough employment opportunities to absorb the graduates that were churned out of our universities due to similar disruptions in our educational system. Why the utmost silence on this particular void?
What can we do to manage the void created by the “GOLD AND GREEN TRACKS”?
The solution should be that which benefits all stakeholders affected by the policy.
I want to present a simple solution which has a long term benefit for all, and more so it is self-managed.
The GES can introduce a new subject which can be splitted into modules to cover the entire period of SHS. Eg. INITIATIVES AND PROJECTS 1, INITIATIVES AND PROJECTS 2, INITIATIVES AND PROJECTS 3.
In this subject, the candidate will be expected to take up a mandatory project, apprenticeship, voluntary endeavor. The choice should be flexible to suit the candidate but comprehensive in assessment.
The duration shall be expected to cover 70% of the vacation period.
It must be structured to teach the candidates critical thinking, volunteerism, patriotism, initiative taking, people skills, or relevant technical skills which the student will be expected to possess in future employments.
It will help the candidates learn time management, working under minimal supervision, sense of purpose and self-discipline, goal setting, people skills.
The work shall be expected to be supervised by the guardians or parents or better still former school authorities at no cost.
These projects will be submitted and graded with records captured on the candidates result every semester. The candidates shall carry CAREFULY DESIGNED LOG BOOK, which documents activities, materials and progress. Milestones achieve shall be vetted and approved or endorsed by persons of high repute, such as clergy, lawyers, heads of institutions and the likes to reinforce the seriousness attached.
This model follows the student’s industrial attachment program run in many tertiary institutions.
This approach puts the responsibility of managing the free long vacation mostly on the candidate, then squarely on the parents and teachers back in school.
The main objective is to direct the focus of the candidate to purposeful ventures and planning for his life.
By the end of 3 years in SHS, students would have identified social opportunities, mentors, and career opportunities that they will rely on for their choice of higher education pursuit and professional development as they contribute meaningfully to nation building.
By Joseph Danso | jdanso@anuc.edu.gh | The writer is a lecturer with the Department of Computer Engineering. All Nations University College, Koforidua
