The Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Education Ekow Vincent Assafuah has stated the government will not relent on its effort to “enlighten” the public more about the double intake system at the Senior High School level from September 2018.
Reacting to former Education Minister Prof. Jane Naana Opoku Agyemang’s assertion that government should make documents covering the semester system available for public scrutiny, Mr. Assafuah said the government has nothing to hide hence the reason why President Akufo-Addo released a statement on the yet-to-be rolled out policy in September.
“We can’t jump onto the fray when the policy document which will spell out how this programme will be run isn’t shared with the public; it will help in knowing what the policy is about and, to a large extent, help us predict it’s outcome,” Prof. Agyemang told Accra-based Joy FM on Tuesday.
Mr. Assafuah noted her suggestion has been “taken in good faith” despite her inability to do same when the National Democratic Congress (NDC) introduced the Progressively Free Senior High School Education when they were in power.
“It has come to my notice a statement made by Prof Naana Opoku Agyeman, Former Minister of Education, appealing to government to make available policy documents on the double track system.
“The President of the Republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, released a statement that from September 2018, Government will implement the double intake system for new entrants into the country’s public Senior High Schools, which will address the growing numbers of about 30% increase in students benefiting from the Free SHS policy in the 2018/2019 academic year.
“Her appeal has been taken in good faith save she implemented Progressively Free Senior High School Education and failed to present a policy document of any kind on the said Free SHS suddenly and yet finds it prudent to ask for same. The public will be enlightened in due course amidst stakeholder discussions.
“All things being equal, government will roll out the double track system to take care of the huge numbers joining the Free SHS flagship programme to ensure that no child is left behind. This new system will increase contact hours, reduce congestion in classroom and ensure efficient and continual use of facilities. This system is guided by the ultimate aim of safeguarding access and quality,” the spokesperson of the Education Ministry said in a Facebook post.
Source: Ghana/Starrfmonline.com/103.5FM
