Ahanta West takes steps to improve poor BECE performance -five schools score 0%

Agona Nkwanta, Oct 22, GNA – The Ahanta West District Assembly has put measures in place to control the falling standards of education as five schools scored zero per cent in the 2012 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).   The measures include the introduction of 30 minutes a day on the schools’ timetable for practical reading lessons and the formation of subject groupings to encourage better interaction to promote efficiency and effectiveness in teaching.   Other measures are strengthening supervisory role of circuit supervisors and Ghana Education Line Managers, providing orientation to teachers recruited under the National Youth Employment Programme and the adopting a school each by the district’s oversight committee and GES staff to periodically visit.   Mr. Joseph Dofoyena, the Ahanta West District Chief Executive, announced these measures when delivering his speech at the third general assembly meeting held at Agona Nkwanta on Monday.   He mentioned the Junior High schools that scored zero per cent as Cape Three Points, Hotopo Methodist, Nsemasu D/A, Salvation Army and Enomoko.   The DCE said the poor performance had placed the district on the 17th position on the BECE league table of the 17 districts in the Western region.   Later in an interview with the media, Mr. Eric Amponsah, the Ahanta West District Director of Education, mentioned poor supervisory role of teachers as well as parents in the homes, failure of qualified teachers to accept postings to deprived areas and lack of accommodation for teachers as factors contributing to the poor performance.   The Education Director noted that poor monitoring of students by parents and guardians had led to 20 teenage pregnancies among the girls for this year as against 15 in 2011.   To check these social vices and poor academic performance, Mr. Amponsah said he had come out with a theme: “Supervision, the Role of the Managers”.   Under the theme all stakeholders including parents, teachers, chiefs, and opinion leaders will be compelled to be managers to actively get involved in moulding the students academically and morally hoping that the strategy will encourage the communities to have interest in their wards’ education.   Mr. Amponsah appealed to parents to stop engaging their children on their farms during school periods.     GNA... Read Full Story