The Ghana National Association of Private Schools has expressed shock at government’s decision to push the resumption of some level of schools till January 2021.
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in his 16th Address to the Nation on COVID-19 response said “The Ghana Education Service, after further consultations, has decided to postpone the remainder of the academic year for all nursery, kindergarten, primary, JHS 1 and SHS 1 students. The next academic year will resume in January 2021, with appropriate adjustments made to the curriculum, to ensure that nothing is lost from the previous year”.
But speaking in an interview on The Pulse on Joynews TV monitored by dreamzfmonline.com, President of the Association of Private Schools Dr. Damasus Tuurosong said his outfit is surprised at the announcement made by the President on the delayed resumption of schools at all levels.
According to him, a committee set up by government to liaise with all stakeholders in the education sector and subsequently advice government on the resumption of the schools is yet to finish its work. He wondered why the decision preceded the recommendations of the committee.
“It is very shocking to be honest with you because this committee was to present its report on 21st September. As private schools, we have a representative on the committee that is working on the reopening and we have been asked to table proposals to the committee on 3rd September. While we were in the process of coming out with our proposals, the President comes and makes this announcement. Even more shocking to us is the fact that we heard from the President’s delivery that relevant stakeholders were consulted in coming out with this decision. We don’t know which relevant stakeholders. If private schools were not consulted or are in the process of being consulted, I don’t know who came out with all these timelines and schedules. It’s really been disturbing to us,” Dr. Tuurosong said.
Commenting on how the delayed reopening will affect the academic calendar, he said “It is still confusing and am sure the education ministry will come to operationalize it a little more. My understanding is that next January, the students will be promoted automatically to a higher level”.
He added that less than 20% of students have gone through any form of online learning, this he said is not proper for the children who would be staying home for ten months by January next year.
“We had based on our own analysis advocated that schools could reopen either this September or October. We have tabled a lot of proposals to government so that the reopening could take place and yet we will be in a position to manage the school children such that they will not contract the virus,” he added.
Dr. Damasus forcefully argued that children are safer from the virus in a school environment than home especially when their parents are not at home with them.
The Association is strongly calling for a reconsideration of the decision and for the schools to be reopened in October this year.
