Mr. Mahama made this pledge during the presentation of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) 2024 manifesto.

Madam Mogtari explained that, many girls begin menstruating during their JHS years, making it crucial to start the initiative at that level.

The program will then expand to include girls in SHS as the distribution progresses.

In an interview on Adom TV, Madam Mogtari expressed concern over the challenges faced by female students due to the lack of access to sanitary pads.

These challenges include early pregnancies, school dropouts, and even child abuse, often arising from parents’ inability to afford sanitary products.

“We are beginning with junior high school students because most female students begin their menstrual cycle there before attending senior high school,” Madam Mogtari stated.

She emphasized the focus on public schools, noting that parents of private school students are more likely to afford sanitary pads.

Joyce Bawah also highlighted a troubling situation revealed by an international investigation, where a woman in the Northern region was exploiting young girls in exchange for providing them with sanitary pads.

When asked if the policy would extend to tertiary students, she responded that they would consider it after addressing the needs of JHS and SHS students.

Alternatively, they might look into reducing taxes to increase the affordability of sanitary pads.

Source: Ayisha Akua Ibrahim

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Mr Forjour hinted that basic schools are expected to resume by Tuesday, January 18, while school for the SHS students will commence on February 7.

According to him, there had been a calendar for the regulation of schools in the country, however, the Covid-19 pandemic has stalled its usage.

Basic schools as well as SHS were tipped to resume classes on January 11, but nothing has been heard from officials two days after the due date.

The delay, Mr Fordjour attributed to the National Standardized Test held for primary 4 pupils on December 17, which he said distracted the schedule, for which the Ministry is putting in efforts to draw a new calendar.

Although the Deputy Minister did not give full details of the re-opening and curriculum, he assured Ghanaians that further details will be communicated.

“January 18th, Tuesday, we are expecting KG-JHS to resume back to school, while we are expecting SHS to resume on the 7th February. Today I will release the opening date but GES will engage in press briefing tomorrow for further details.”

He disclosed that plans are being put in place to factor vacation dates for both levels in a way that they will not clash.

Speaking on Adom TV’s Badwam, he said his sector is unfazed by pressure from some quarters as the motive is to announce an impeccable calendar that would be unanimously agreed on.

Despite the setbacks the Standardized tests have posed to the sector, Mr Fordjour said there are no regrets for its introduction.

In the history of Ghanaian education, he said this is the first time an examination has not been rocked with controversy, malpractice and leakage of questions.

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The workshop which will run from 3rd to 5th November, 2020, will serve as a platform to fine-tune the training plan and resources for subsequent training of teachers across the entire country.

The simulation will also provide critical insight and feedback that will help prepare the curriculum experts who will lead the national master trainers’ workshops, expected to commence in the coming weeks.

The CCP is a carefully designed programme consisting of a set of learning areas which all learners are expected to study from JHS 1 to SHS 1. It aims to prepare learners for further education, the world of work or both. After SHS 1, learners have the option of branching into academic or career pathways.

Speaking at the event, Dr Prince Armah stressed the importance of the ongoing reforms to the national curriculum, which he said were carefully designed to develop a new generation of young Ghanaians who are well-equipped for further education and the world of work.

He urged participants to ensure that the goal of the workshop, which is to fine-tune the training plan in order to ensure an effective nationwide implementation of the new curriculum, is achieved.

Prof. Kwame Osei-Kwarteng, the Chairman of the NaCCA Council also expressed gratitude to participants for taking part in the vital national exercise and wished them a successful programme.

The Common Core Programme curriculum has been approved by Cabinet but its implementation which was scheduled for September 2020, was delayed as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

It is now expected to be rolled out at the start of the next academic year, beginning with learners in JHS 1 before being gradually scaled up to those in SHS 1 in subsequent years.

Curriculum and subject experts from NaCCA, the GES and various educational institutions involved in the development of the new CCP Curriculum are taking part in the workshop, which is being held at the Aknak Hotel in Accra.

A press statement addressing the issue said there is no intent to increase to four years the JHS period and reduce SHS to two years in the 2020/2021 academic year.

“NaCCA wishes to state emphatically that with the planned implementation process of the Common Core Programme in the next academic year, the duration for both JHS and SHS will remain three years each,” it said.

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Read full statement below:

The driver took side with the parents and the passenger took the other side.

Thirty minutes into the journey, after refusing to accept each other’s point, the passenger made a submission that got the driver levelling on the same plane, eh333 that is my point, he said.

Sharply the passenger asked is it my point or your point? Meanwhile, one man who was grossly angry that the passenger was taking the attention of the driving rebuked them “and who is awarding the points?”

But please allow me to make my point.

With our universities, there no Covid-19 issues. Same with our Junior High Schools (JHS), there are no politics or gimmicks being played with it but what about the Senior High School (SHS)?

Is it because it is free? Lol.

Those calling for closure of schools; are they calling for closure of only Free SHS or Tertiary (universities) and JHS as well?

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I have heard people arguing that some other African countries have decided to close schools till 2021 and so Ghana should do same.

I have listened, watched and read most of them, all the countries Nigeria, Kenya etc. are looking at re-opening school to all categories of students, this is different from Ghana.

We have or are re-opening schools in phases and in a controlled manner.

I will rather urge government to rather set up well-resourced Isolation centres in all schools because there are more than enough rooms to spare, thus, less than a third of students are currently on campus.

Sending potentially infected children to parents in their single or two-bedroom homes may rather put an entire family in danger and it’s definitely not the way to go at this point.

It is frightening as a parent to hear your child’s school has recorded a case but I feel it is also not the best for some parents to demand for their wards because they wouldn’t know their status.

If it gets to the point where schools are to close down, the best thing the government can do is to ensure that at least all students from schools with recorded cases are tested before being released to go home.

But I still stick to my point that the schools have the best advantage when it comes to isolation.

Vigilance and strict adherence to the protocol is the best thing to do. Inciting parents to go for their children may not just put them at risk but an entire family, community and all of us.

This article was written by Mr Gyasi Appiah, a concerned Ghanaian.

The call by the Minority comes on the back of increased number of COVID-19 cases in the country as well as recorded cases of infections among students in some schools.

Parents with wards at the Accra Girls Senior High School on Monday trooped to the school premises to withdraw their children following a reported outbreak of COVID-19 in the school.

Six students, according to reports, are confirmed to have been infected with the virus.

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According to members of the Minority, “sick or dead students cannot write exam.” They are, thus, demanding that the government re-examines its decision to reopen schools for final year students.

Read statement below:

MINORITY STATEMENT – PRIORITIZE THE LIVES OF OUR STUDENTS AS COVID 19 RISK INCREASES

The NDC Minority in Parliament hereby calls on President Akufo-Addo and his government to prioritize the lives of our students currently in school in light of the increased number of COVID-19 cases in our country as well as reported cases of infections recorded among students in some schools.

Our call as a responsible Minority, is based on the fast rising cases of COVID-19 in Ghana, which has crossed 20,000 cases so far. Indeed, various statements have been made by several individuals and institutions in our society over the motivation to continue to have Senior High schools and Junior High schools opened albeit final year students.

Government, through the President and other ministers, have made several statements that sought to assure the general public and to dampen their fears amid the deadly novel coronavirus. Many have feared, rightly so, that the safety measures that were to be instituted ahead of the reopening of these schools were inadequate.

Soon after, government made several promises of ensuring the provision of the needed infrastructure including; temperature guns, nose masks, hand washing buckets, sanitizers, among other things, while ensuring social distancing in these schools.

At the time President Akufo-Addo announced the easing of measures ahead of reopening these schools to allow the final year students take their exit exams, Ghana’s case count stood at 8,070. Since that announcement about a month ago, over 12,000 COVID-19 cases have been recorded, which gives a clear indication of the mass community spreading of the deadly virus.

The fears of Ghanaians and parents in particular have heightened after the Minister for Health, Hon. Kweku Agyemang Manu, the Minister for Education, Matthew Opoku Prempeh and Minister for Regional Reorganization, Hon. Dan Botwe tested positive for the virus, which led to the directives of the President, Akufo-Addo, suspending Cabinet meetings indefinitely, ostensibly to mitigate the spread of the virus.

Such is the deadly nature of the virus that from day one, we have been advised to observe some strict measures to be able to win the fight against the novel virus. As it stands, Ghana’s cases are on the rise, while efforts have been undertaken to engage in activities that will ruin all the safety measures we are advised to observe if the fight against this virus is to succeed.

Senior High schools opened just about two weeks ago. Ahead of the opening of schools, government announced commitments supposedly aimed at ensuring safety in these schools. Days and weeks after the schools were opened, several reports indicate that some schools still operate without those safety measures government announced.

Right before schools were reopened, an accomplished educationist, Mr. Kwame Alorvi, had cause to author an article which chronicled government’s announcements ahead of the reopening and government’s efforts so far at making do its pronouncements after the reopening. He cites for instance, that some schools including the Yilo Krobo SHS were not disinfected contrary to government’s promises to disinfect all schools before reopening. He also indicated that the Achimota School was being disinfected while students were reporting from the break.

Several other news portals reported disappointing states of some schools across the country ahead of the reopening. For instance, the Ghana News Agency (GNA) reported that many schools in the Northern parts of Ghana reopened without PPEs. Similar other reports also indicated some schools in the Western parts of Ghana reopened without these personal protective gears.

Only a few days ago, teacher unions such as NAGRAT, GNAT, CCT and TEWU, raised concerns over the Ghana Education Service (GES) reversal of a decision to allow only teachers who have lessons to report for duty. According to them, contrary to agreements ahead of reopening that only teachers who have lessons should report for duty, the GES now requires the presence of teachers on campuses whether or not, they have lessons. This adds up to the congestion, which the virus needs to thrive.

Reports emerging are that some students of the Accra Girls Senior High School, have contracted the virus and have been taken into isolation. What makes this situation even unfortunate is that parents of these children may not be aware of the conditions of their wards as schools have been warned to close their gates to visiting, as well as strictly adhere to directives of not calling parents except headmasters.

As of today, even the Ghana Medical Association continues to ask for PPEs to aid their work. We must not forget that these are the highest risk individuals along the chain. So far, some 150 medical doctors have been reported to have contracted the virus, with 5 confirmed dead.

These instances, and the rise in figures which confirms wide community spread, is raising concerns for calls on government to shut down schools. It begs the question on how government officials, with all the sophistication at their disposal, resources, etc, could be contracting the virus. How officials who are matured and could socially distance, are being infected by the virus, while schools children some as young as thirteen (13) could be kept in schools with hope that they would not contract the virus.

Some of these school children, report to school through the use of commercial vehicles, which increases their risk of infections. Some schools, including some in Ho, which have called for mass testing of their students before admitting them to mingle with others, were ignored without a second thought.

We are of the firmest conviction that as a nation we must not wait until it is too late to do anything. Our students need to be protected from the high risks of exposure. As can be seen, the Akufo-Addo government has failed to contain the virus.

The mere rush to isolate by President Akufo-Addo, after he suspected to have been exposed to a positive case, tells how he has failed to assure us of a win over the virus. Who knows how many have come in contact with infected persons who may not know their status if our president with all at his disposal, could be exposed to such a risk?

It is time government reconsiders keeping our schools opened while we enter our rooms everyday with prayer that no one gets infected. We also have a choice of reducing such high risk, by closing these schools for a much extended period until we are sure of having contained the virus which would reflect on our cases per day. In the last few days, Ghana recorded over 750 and over 690 cases per day. This does not provide any parent the comfort to assume the safety of their children.

The government, the Ministry of Education, the Teacher Unions and Civil Society Organizations, must get back to the table, and with the help of medical experts, re-examine the situation at hand, and make amends in the initial decisions that saw the reopening of schools. If the real motive to reopen schools is for final year students to prepare to write their final examinations, then a second look at this motive in the face of rising cases and reported cases in some schools is warranted.

We must prioritize the lives of the students, after all, how can sick or dead students write exams. The examinations can be postponed but the safely of our future leaders cannot be postponed.

Dr. Clement Apaak
M.P, Builsa South and Deputy Ranking Member on the Education Committee of Parliament

July 6, 2020

In a statement signed by the Director of Public Affairs, Sheilla Kesse Abayie-Buckman, the police said their message of caution was informed by previous experiences with JHS leavers.

“It has been observed from previous years that some JHS graduates indulge in drug and alcohol abuse and other acts that lead to crimes and injuries and in some cases death at beaches among others,” the statement disclosed.

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Below is the full statement:

Source: Adomonline.com

Wednesday night’s incident in the Ahafo Ano South District saw teaching and learning materials and other school property completely burnt.

Though the cause of the fire has not been established yet, school authorities suspect a group of students who had been asked to repeat their class for non-performance is behind the fire.

News of inferno at the school which sits on the outskirts of the town came as a surprise to many because there is no electricity there.

Distress calls to the nearest fire station at Mankranso  yielded no result.

Members of the community managed to salvage only a few pieces of furniture.

Students and teachers arrived on the campus Thursday morning to a devastating sight of the destruction.

They later wore red armbands, calling for investigation to track down and bring the perpetrators to book.

Students say they had brought the threats to attention community leaders and police after an earlier arson attempt.

Though teachers will not speak on record they say they have been targets of robbery.

The community is saddened at the incident.

Nana Obiri Yeboah, a concerned parent says the whole community have kept awake since the time of the incident.

Police at Mankranso say they have commenced investigations into the matter.

District Commander, Supt. John Adusei  says they are working with the community to uncover the mystery behind the incident.

“We have been on the ground since the incident happened, my men were even present when the fire was consuming the building. The people are suspecting arson so we will consider that as well”, he said.

The community proposes a Senior High School structure under construction be used temporarily by the displaced JHS students.

Omanhene of the area, Nana Tabiri Gyansah says the community will prepare the proposed site to receive the students.

Meanwhile, the District Education Directorate says it will liaise with the community to resettle the students, based on advice from the District Security Committee.

Public Relations Officer, Osei Brenya says they are considering sharing students among schools in the community.

Teachers upon request will be transferred temporarily from the community until the place is declared safe for them.

“Teachers do not feel safe so we will also consider their safety in every step we take”, he added.

According to him, inasmuch as some JHS and SHS students fail to meet expectations, several others have gone through that system and are exceeding expectations, hence scrapping them will not be the best of solutions to the challenges bedevilling the sector.

His comments follow the Ghana Charismatic Bishops’ Conference urging the government to bring back the O and A level system of education and scrap the JHS and the SHS.

The Conference in a communiqué said: “If JHS and SHS was not an inferior form of education, why do they take their children out of it when they have the money to do so?

“We call the JHS and SHS an inferior form of education because the quality of the products of the schools and the universities today, leaves much to be desired. Any employer today knows that there are many of our graduates who cannot even read and write English properly. D. We call the JHS and SHS an inferior form of education because prestigious schools in Ghana (like Wesley Girls’ High School) do their own entrance examination to screen their students.

“Why would they do another screening examination if the JHS results could be trusted? It is obvious that even the secondary schools do not trust the JHS system. e. We call the JHS and SHS an inferior form of education because universities do their own entrance examination to screen their students. Why do the medical schools do another examination after the SHS results?

“Under the old system, the ‘A’ level results were accepted as the basis for entrance into the university. It is obvious that the universities do not trust the SHS system and that is why they do an entrance examination for medical school. f. We call the JHS and SHS an inferior form of education because international universities require our SHS graduates to do a foundational course for a whole year before admitting them to the university proper. Years ago, graduates from secondary schools in Ghana did not have to do such foundational courses because they already had a good foundation. g. We call the JHS and SHS an inferior form of education because of the quality of the examinations which they write. h. We call the JHS and SHS an inferior form of education because we have reason to doubt the current ability of the WAEC to conduct credible examinations.”

But speaking in an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme on Tuesday 14 March, Mr Acheampong said: “We need to look at the issues affecting the JHS and fix them rather than scrapping the JHS and the SHS.

“After operating this system for years, we need to sit down and look at the issues affecting the sector. We need a national developmental agenda devoid of politics where all stakeholders including the bishops and government officials will deliberate on the way forward.”

In another interview with Citi FM, he had said: “It is not an issue of five years or ten years’ duration. Society is supposed to be dynamic, so at certain times we have to make certain changes. But the point is that we can sacrifice quality at the expense of the changes that we have made. Over the years, the challenges that we have had is that resource allocation to education has been poor.

“There is a whole issue of a language problem. We said that we should begin to teach our children from kindergarten to lower primary three in the local language.

“For instance, in Accra, how many of the teachers in Accra can speak Ga to teach Ga at the local level? So, the concepts of some of the topics can be grasped at that level… Let us give the children the opportunity that was given to us when we went to Form One. That is what we should be talking about and not the number of years. I believe that those are the serious issues that we should be concerned with.”

source: classfm