The Ministry of Education has reversed its decision to introduce a semester-based system for basic schools in the country.

This follows protests by various stakeholders who claimed that they were not consulted before the policy was announced. Contained in a statement signed by press secretary, Felix A. Baidoo, it revealed that the Ministerial Committee on School Calendar issued a calendar for the current academic year indicating that Kindergarten to Junior High School was to be based on the Semester system.

It explained that following the directives to commence the Semester system, the Ministry has received representation from a section of the public and key educational stakeholders to re-instate the Trimester system.

“After further consultation on the issue, the Honourable Minister for Education has directed that the calendar for Kindergarten to Junior High School for the current academic year should revert to the Trimester system”.
Ministry of Education

Consequently, the ministry released new dates for the various school terms for Kindergarten to Junior High School. Per the statement the first term, totalling twelve weeks will commenced from 18th January – 14th April, 2022. Following this, schools will go on vacation from 15th April – 9th May, 2022.

The ministry explained that the fourteen weeks of the second term will begin from 10th May to 18th August 2022, with students vacating from 19th August to 12th September, 2022. For the third term, school starts from 13th September to 22nd December, 2022.

On January 13, the Ministry announced the introduction of the semester-based system in place of the trimester one. However, in a statement issued on Friday, January 21, 2022, it rescinded its decision.

Teachers unions demanded return to trimester system

Teacher unions prior to that insisted that the Ghana Education Service (GES) returned to the traditional trimester system instead of the new semester system. According to the union, the new system will make basic school students tired and lose concentration in classrooms.

At a meeting held by both parties, the Unions intimated that the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service’s move to use a semester calendar for the 2022 and subsequent academic years is a step in the wrong direction.

Spokesperson for the Ghana Education Service, Cassandra Twum Ampofo, explained that the GES and the Education Ministry explained to teachers the benefit of the semester calendar but they insisted it should be reviewed.

“We met the teacher unions, we presented our argument before them, just like they did. They insisted that we go back to the trimester system. We were not able to resolve”.
Cassandra Twum Ampofo

Madam Ampofo indicated the Education Service and the Minister for Education will schedule another stakeholders engagement in the coming week for further consultation on the controversial 2022 school calendar.

Education Unions, Minority in Parliament and Education Think Tanks including Africa Education Watch and the Institute for Education Studies (IFEST) since the release of the calendar have called for the new calendar to be suspended.

The General Secretary of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Mr Thomas Musah, commenting on the newly introduced semester calendar noted that it will only make the government school kindergarten students fatigue.