Free SHS: NAGRAT to demand review of class size

The National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) has indicated plans to demand from the education management body, a review of class size to address the issue of overcrowding following the implementation of the government’s free Senior High School policy.

According to Vice President of NAGRAT, Angel Gabriel Karbonu the current situation where some classrooms have over 50 students is unproductive.

At least over 400,000 JHS graduates benefited from the policy following their performance in the 2017 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).

But some senior high schools are said to be losing their balance two months after the take-off of the free SHS policy, which has resulted in outstretched existing facilities.

Some of the schools are struggling to contain the situation as a result of either poor or unavailability of adequate infrastructure.

Undoubtedly, the introduction of the policy means that 100,000 more of qualified BECE candidates have been enrolled in senior high schools across the country.

Speaking on the Super Morning Show on Joy FM, the NAGRAT Vice President said the Association will soon make a demand of the Ghana Education Service (GES) to strictly cut class size to a maximum of 30 students for effective teaching and learning as well as supervision.




Mr. Karbonu told Kojo Yankson, host of the Show, Monday: “We will need to bring our class sizes to the internationally accepted standard.”

“We are really going to demand class sizes based on scientifically researched models,” he insisted.

He reiterated the Association’s call for a cut-out of the policy to serve as a guideline for the teachers in assessing the performance of the students.

“We would need to have a template of materials that ought to be supplied” and the time frame with which these materials would have to reach the school managers, he stated.

He added that teachers, “have a traditional role to play that when the students are available and the resources are available, we are ready to teach” to make the policy a success.

Mr. Karbonu further called for a thorough auditing of the free SHS programme two months after its introduction, so that adequate steps could be taken to address some of the challenges that have been identified so far.

Source: Myjoyonline.com