New Kaira Basic School appeals to government to complete classroom block
Work on the construction of a six-unit classroom block for the New Kaira Basic School in the South Dayi District has been abandoned.
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The project, at the roofing stage, was started in 2011, and it is being undertaken with funds from the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund). It is expected to accommodate the basic school while a three-classroom unit being used by the current student population of over 150, is to be converted into a junior high school (JHS).
Combined classes
The situation has forced school authorities to combine two classes in one classroom at the same time.
When Daily Graphic visited the school, it was greeted with a situation where two teachers were seen teaching different classes in one classroom while the pupils faced opposite directions in the room.
Basic two, three and six share one classroom, while those in four and five also share another classroom.
A female teacher who handled class two and three lamented that she was unable to develop a strategy to teach the two classes at the same time and also complete the syllabus, resulting in a decline in the academic performance of pupils.
European Union support
In an interview, the Chairman of the School Management Committee, Mr Francis Amewuho Segbefia, disclosed that in 2007, the European Union (EU) constructed a three-unit classroom for basic one to three pupils to replace the dilapidated thatched-roof building that the community was able to put up through communal labour, which later became too small for the increasing school population.
Following appeals made by the community for a new school building, the government in 2011 commenced work on the construction of the six-unit block.
According to Mr Segbefia, non-completion of the block was affecting the smooth running of the school as teaching and learning was becoming ineffective due to the congestion in the classrooms.
Although the school is the only basic one in the farming and fishing community, Mr Segbefia indicated, parents were withdrawing their wards to schools in other communities, resulting in a drastic reduction in the school’s population.
No junior high school
Also those who had completed basic school in the town have been compelled to further their education in other communities because there is no JHS in the town. Due to the bad roads and difficulty in getting vehicles to convey them to school, these students walk over five kilometres to attend school in another community called Kaira.
Mr Segbefia said that the stress the children went through would be solved if the structure was completed.
Inadequate desks
Aside from the issue of infrastructure, the chairman stated that the desks, teaching materials and accommodation for teachers were inadequate, and added that teachers who were posted to the school did not accept the posting because of the deplorable situation in the school. The school, therefore, has only five teachers including the headmistress.
When contacted, the District Chief Executive for South Dayi, Mr Kafui Semenu Bekui, confirmed that the project had delayed due to lack of funds.
