Improve facilities in less-endowed SHSs- FOGET tells govt
The Foundation for Generational Thinkers (FOGET) has called on the government to fast track the improvement of facilities in less-endowed Senior High Schools (SHS) across the country to serve as an attraction to Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) candidates and teachers.
That, it said, was to prevent the pressure put on schools with better facilities and limited vacancies during the Computerised School Selection and
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Placement System (CSSPS)
Adding its voice to the unfortunate happenings at the Independence Square in Accra on Monday, September 16, 2019, during which parents, alongside potential SHS students who thronged the venue to find solutions to their problems, the foundation said parents not getting admission to the ‘best secondary schools’ or what is generally called ‘Grade A’ schools should not be the end of the world for those ambitious teenagers eager to further their education at the SHS level.
Frustration
“FOGET, very active in the educational sector wants to remind frustrated parents and disappointed BECE graduates that it is students, working in tandem with their teachers who create renowned schools not the presence of physical infrastructure,” a statement signed by the President of FOGET, Mr Prosper Afetsi, said.
Therefore, it said, their inability to get Grade ‘A’ SHSs should not dampen their spirit but rather help them to work hard to achieve whatever dreams they had.
It said it appreciated the Ghana Education Service (GES) explanation and subsequent apology for the software malfunction which created the chaotic situation at the Black Star Square.
It pointed out that the time had come to subject the computerised placement system to a rigorous audit and find out why those unfortunate happenings in the educational sector occurred on a yearly basis.
‘After 14 years of implementing the CSSPS, we are still bedeviled with the same problem of wrong postings, inability of students to get schools of their choice and sometimes boys posted to girls’ school or normal students sent to schools for the challenged.
Software
“Though the software malfunction which the GES is blaming on sabotage may be real, we as parents must go beyond that explanation and create a new reality for our children, a reality that will be a valuable lesson for them from now and into the future.
We know each student wants to be a product of the big name schools which in addition to being in existence for decades have better educational facilities, coupled with experienced teachers eager to impart so much knowledge to the students,” it said.
The statement said history had ,however, demonstrated that it was not the physical infrastructure and age of the school that produced great students but rather the determination of students to make a mark to challenge the myth about the so-called ‘Grade A’ schools.
Continuing, FOGET reminded students that a school’s location can never be a hindrance to achieving one’s desired goals in life and, therefore, urged them including their parents not to be disheartened and frustrated if they did not gain admission to those well-endowed schools.
