The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has announced that, as part of the government’s efforts to improve upon education at the Senior High Schools (SHS) level, laptop computers which would be imbedded with textbooks of the various courses and past questions would be distributed to each student before the end of the year.
The move, the Vice President explained, was a deliberate attempt by the government to promote effective teaching and learning in schools, and remove the bottlenecks associated with the printing of textbooks and the cost involved in the provision of appropriate course textbooks for students.
Speaking at the 60th Anniversary celebration of the E.P. Senior High School (HEPSS) in the Hohoe Municipality of the Volta Region over the weekend under the theme: “HEPSS at 60, Reflecting on Our Journey and Inspiring New Directions – The Role of Stakeholders”, the Vice President said the government was committed to promoting quality education that would meet the changing trend in the world of technology.
Dr. Bawumia said the world was being moved by technology and digitalisation, and that the government would work hard to promote technology among the youth, through quality education.
He noted that the free SHS had proven to be successful, because even though it had increased enrolment, the quality of education had not been compromised.
This, he stated, had reflected in the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results since the inception of the programme.
He stressed that the world was being controlled by technology and digitalisation, and therefore students should embrace it to enable them fit into the emerging world of Information Communication Technology (ICT).
He told the students that Ghana could not afford to isolate herself from the global technological development at all business transactions, including banking and marketing among others.
‘’The world is driven by technology and innovation, therefore it is important for students to be trained and encouraged to embrace the emerging world of technology, it is a new world , it is the world of digitalisation, which is possible for us as a nation to be part of the new world.”
Dr. Bawumia stressed that the government had provided a level playing ground for children of poor background and the rich to develop their talents through the free SHS, adding that it was crucial for students to take advantage of existing opportunities in education to prepare themselves towards the future.
The Headmaster of the school, Mr. Franklin Amesimku, mentioned the current student population as 3,369 with 177 staff made up of 140 teaching and 37 non-teaching staff.
Mr. Amesimeku said the school presented 928 candidates for the WASSCE in 2022, out of which 865 candidates had from aggregates seven to 24, and by that they qualified to enter any tertiary institution. He noted that those who had aggregates 25 to 30 could equally further their education because they passed all the core subjects.
He, however, said inadequate infrastructure, including classrooms, dormitories, dining hall, lack of an assembly hall, administration block, and accommodation for teachers in the school, water problems and the need for school vehicles to facilitate educational tours, were some of the challenges confronting the school.
The Headmaster, therefore, appealed to the government and other organisations to come to the aid of the school to ease congestion in classrooms and dormitories in particular, saying the government, Parent Teacher Association (PTA) and the Old Students Association of the school (HEPSSOSA) have all supported the school in the provision of infrastructure, but in view of the growing population a lot more needed to be done.
