Duration of senior high schools in Ghana
A lot has been said about the duration of Senior High School (SHS) in Ghana. Listening to the arguments, I get the impression that people argue to satisfy their own interests rather than addressing the fundamental issues that hinge on the quality and objectives of our education. I think the discussion has to look beyond the SHS duration and look at the entire school structure, content and its implication on the students and the country at large.
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Old system
The two-step pre-university educational structure, where students had to go through a five-year O’ Level, and two years A’ level education before tertiary has been replaced with the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), scrapping the sixth form period which used to shape students to attain personal development and future careers.
Primary education
Primary education has been and is still six years. It represents the child’s best learning period where learning is effective when school environments combine activity-based lessons with varied extra-curricular activities.
Junior High School (JHS)
The JHS education has always been part of all reforms, except that the old Middle School was turned into JHS, but that reduced the school duration by one year with a change of school syllabus. Government found it relevant, in 1978, to infuse technical and vocational training into our school system. The Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC) government, in 1987, then made JHS compulsory throughout the county and made basic education a prerequisite for gaining admission into SHS.
Senior High School
The SHS system originally consisted of three years O’ level and two years Sixth Form for A’ level, but there were collapsed into one and made three-year SHS by the PNDC. It was changed to four years and later reversed to three years for different reasons.
The arguments
The arguments against the old system include the long stay of students in school. For others, the new order limits students and offers less opportunity for them. Some also argued that there was high cost associated with the old system, while others wanted the school system to be aligned with the West African sub-regional school system.
Emerging issues
Recent discussions on the SHS have mostly centred on school duration without linking it to the basic and tertiary education duration. Ghana has had the seven years, five years, three years, and four years and now back to the three years school system through different educational reforms, but discussing SHS in isolation makes us lose the bigger picture.
Duration and benefits
Mostly, graduates of SHS take four years to complete their courses at the university. This used to be three years under the old system. Therefore, one year of the two-year sixth-form period is added at the tertiary. Currently, there is only a one-year difference between the old and the new system- 17 years for the old system and 16 years for the new. So what has been achieved?
Old system Basic Secondary Six Form University Total
9yrs 3yrs 2yrs 3yrs = 17yrs
New system 9yrs 3yrs (+1) 4yrs = 16yrs
Time for reflection
Testing the two systems over the years gives us the reason to reflect on the two systems to determine which one brings utmost benefit to the country. This has to be done within the entire school duration from primary to tertiary and with other considerations, whether the new educational system has brought greater benefits than the old system.
Pressure on tertiary facilities
The current SHS system produces more students and at a faster rate than the old, but puts pressure on the limited university facilities. With the three-year SHS and four years university duration, there are always two batches of applicants ready to enter into tertiary institutions. Meanwhile, schools’ facilities have not been expanded to match with this increment.
Non-graduate national service
Before the new system, it was a requirement for candidates to do a national service after sixth form. Personnel were posted to different parts of the country, especially the remotest areas for their national service. It created opportunities for personnel to gain working experience and also exposed them to different cultures, and reduced the financial burdens of parents, especially those from poor backgrounds who wished to further their education.
Catching up with WAEC
The idea to align Ghana’s school system with the sub-regional one is not bad, but needs to be done to meet the development needs of the people. Britain, even before Brexit, has been issuing her own visas and uses her own currencies. Countries look at their peculiar circumstances and opt for what will be of greater benefit to them.
The decision for an educational system should first satisfy the country before the sub-region. The argument to align Ghana to other West African countries is contrary to this view if it fails to give the maximum benefits to its people. If for nothing at all, the United Kingdom is there to serve as an example.
Cost
Students, this year, paid about GH¢ 2,256 for both academic and residential fees. On the face of it, it looks very small as compared to what is paid at the SHS level, but at the tertiary level, students bear their own living costs and other academic expenses. Campus experience suggests a higher expenditure than that of SHS. Why not then keep the students at the senior high level and pay less rather than pushing them into the universities to spend more for four years?
Effects on sports
Students have had to shelve their talents in sports in order to make use of the short time available to them. This has affected the country in getting quality sports talents to feed our national teams and also meet international competitions.
Should WASSCE be scrapped?
If we accept WASSCE as a replacement of the ‘O’ and ‘A’ levels, then it needs to be re-examined to find out if it has been able to generate the needed outcomes from such a school system, else a recall for the ‘A’ level.
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