No Student will be out of School for the lack of space - Minister

Mozano (C/R), March 25, GNA - Mr Alex Tettey-Enyo, Minister of Education, has assured the nation that no student who qualifies for admission into Senior High School in September 2010 will be out of school=

for the lack of accommodation. He said the Ministry was bent on committing substantial resources to=

ensure that all student intakes into SHS-One next academic year were cate= red for. He said the Ministry would provide additional classrooms for all schools that needed them by September 2010.

The Minister gave the assurance in a speech read on his behalf by Mr= s Georgina Quaisie, Head of Science Education Unit, at the Third Speech and=

Prize-Giving Day of the Mozano Senior High School at Mozano in the Gomoa West District of the Central Region. The theme for the Day was "Providing Quality Secondary Education: Th= e Challenges of the Community School."

Mr Tettey-Enyo intimated that government's education policy was to s= ee to the proper upbringing of the child so that he or she could take up the=

challenges of the nation and that anything likely to hinder the policy mu= st be addressed.

Professor Kobina Yankson, a former Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast who was the Guest Speaker, pointed out that qual= ity secondary education was the key determinant of the quality of professiona= ls produced at the tertiary level and consequently the quality and pace of socio-economic development.

Mr Yankson expressed concern about the West African Examinations Council's classification of public Senior High Schools for 2010, which indicated that out of 496 schools only 13.1 per cent were in category A, and 14.5 per cent in category B, whiles the remaining 72.4 per cent were in C=

and D categories.

He said the classification implied that only 27.6 per cent, being schools in A and B categories had the potential to offer quality educatio= n. "Unfortunately, the community schools fall under the last category,"=

the Professor noted. Prof Yankson pointed out that the classification also indicated that=

whereas 99 per cent and 97 per cent of categories A and B schools respectively offered General Science, only 52 per cent and 18 per cent of=

the categories C and D respectively did so.

He said it showed that children from the rural communities were bein= g denied the opportunity to study the sciences.

He said since Ghana needed a critical mass of Scientists and Technologists to drive the socio-economic development agenda, every child=

must be given the opportunity to study this crucial subject according to their natural capabilities and urged government to resource all community=

schools to offer science electives.

Mr Edward C. Acquah, Headmaster, appealed for accommodation for staf= f and students and also additional classrooms for the 2010-2011 academic ye= ar admission. Mt Theophilus Aidoo-Mensah, Gomoa West District Chief Executive advi= sed students to take advantage of government's interventions to ensure qualit= y education delivery to study hard to secure a better future. Mr Aidoo-Mensah pledged 100 bags of cement for the School. Prizes we= re given to deserving students and staff.