The proposed Free SHS Bill, which is yet to be tabled in Parliament, aims to do away with the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) as a requirement for admission to secondary schools, as reported by Graphic.com.gh.
The bill seeks to restructure the education system by separating junior high schools from primary schools and integrating them into a six-year secondary education framework. Instead, the BECE will be used solely for school selection purposes.
Dr Yaw Osei Adutowum explained that if the bill is passed, the SHS certificate will become the first official educational qualification in the country, replacing the current BECE certificate.
The Minister stressed that the restructuring will ensure six-year continuity of secondary education and that new schools will place secondary and tertiary students on the same campus. Existing schools that serve both secondary and tertiary students will continue this practice, as in the old system, where ordinary and advanced level students studied together.
Dr Adutowum noted that the bill seeks to revive a system similar to the old junior and senior secondary school relationship where the Common Entrance Examination was used for school selection and the Hall Examination was used for qualification for employment or further education.
Why legislation?
Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwam, in an interaction with journalists, stressed the importance of legislating free SHS. He noted that although the current policy is not mandatory, future governments may discontinue it if they deem it unnecessary.
“We need a law that guarantees universal free and compulsory secondary education. This means that the minimum education for Ghanaians should be high school and not junior high school,” he stressed.
The 1992 Constitution already guarantees free, compulsory and universal basic education (FCUBE). The proposed bill seeks to extend this guarantee to secondary education, in line with Article 38 of the Constitution, which mandates the state to provide educational facilities at all levels and ensure that all citizens have access to education.
Dr. Adutwam noted that the free secondary education policy had led to more than 505,000 new students being enrolled this year, the highest enrolment in the country’s history. However, he feared that some students who are not yet of working age would give up on secondary education. He argued that making secondary education compulsory would prevent such students from becoming involved in crime and other social problems.
The Minister commended the positive impact of free tertiary education in the Northern Region, where progression rates from secondary to tertiary schooling are significantly higher than in the Southern Region: 95 percent in the Northern Region, compared to 66 percent in the Volta Region.
Majority Leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin has called on the minority in parliament to clarify its position on the Free SHS Bill.
He announced that the Free SHS Bill has received executive approval and will soon be presented to Parliament.
Responding, Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato-Forson, said his party was not opposed to the bill and called on the government to expedite its introduction in Parliament.
Dr. Forson reiterated that the minority is in support of policies aimed at sustaining and improving the free SHS initiative.
The free SHS policy has benefited more than 3.04 million students since its launch in 2017, but it has also been criticized over issues such as meals, accommodation, holidays and uncertainty about the SHS academic calendar.
Some education scholars and think tanks are calling for a policy review to address these challenges and ensure sustainable funding.
TWI News
Opposition/OGB
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