Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, Minister for Education, has stated that the government is going to leverage technology to digitize education to make it more efficient to meet the needs of the 21st century. According to him, this is necessary to train critical thinkers that will help the nation solve its challenges.
“We want to take advantage of technology to digitize education in Ghana. We have a dashboard that is coming that will allow the minister for education to log in and see the attendance of every district”.
Addressing a Minister’s press briefing today, Dr. Adutwum highlighted several interventions that the government has rolled out over the past five years. He highlighted the major infrastructural projects that the government has undertaken so far. Other areas he commented on were the research fund, free SHS policy and other new policies that are yet to be launched.
First and foremost, Dr. Adutwum hinted that there is going to be a standardized test for students across the country since the only time a national examination is conducted is during their BECE examination. He explained that, at this time, it is too late because nothing can be done if the students have any deficiencies.
“This year, every student will be tested at fourth grade level; National Standardized Test. Which have been done in Singapore and other places; it’s going to be a reality under the watch of the leadership of Nana Akufo-Addo.
“So, parents our goal is simple; We want to know whether your child can read or not. And the report will be generated and given to every single parent in this country in mathematics and literacy for them to really know whether their children are doing well or not. And then, we have the opportunity to track them longitudinally”.
Ranking of schools
Also, Minister of Education revealed that there is going to be a ranking of high schools in the country. He explained that there is going to be two different rankings; a national ranking and a ranking of schools with similar characteristics.
Similarly, Dr. Adutwum revealed that the Ministry will deploy a new curriculum soon to aid teaching and learning in basic and High schools. The Minister further assured of a massive transformation that will take place in the educational system in the country.
“Things are going to change; and they are going to change because we find in this country youth that are ready to learn, determined to learn. And we need to create a platform for them to do just that. And they will make Ghana proud when the foundation is laid for them”.
Free SHS Policy
Dr. Adutwum stressed that the government is seeking to create a system that will help track students throughout their school going ages. He highlighted that the outcomes of the Free SHS are great.
As a consequence, he congratulated the first free SHS graduates for the good performance. He indicated that students that studied very well did well in the exams. Meanwhile, he disagreed with people who alleged that the students were aided in the WASSCE exams. According to him, if that was the case, “why were they demonstrating?”, he quizzed.
According to the minister, the free SHS has become more relevant during this COVID period than ever before. This is because people are struggling to make ends meet, let alone pay their wards school fees. Moreover, the Minister hinted that the government will eliminate the double track system in SHS in the next 2 to 3 years.
Additionally, the Education Minister assured that the NPP government is poised to continue all the programs that the previous government has started. This, according to him, is to the benefit of the Ghanaian people.
“I always believe that we are one country; one government does something, another continues. If it goes well, it goes well for the nation. And politics should not come to the level where we want to score some political points by saying that something that is so good, is so bad”.
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