The Ghana Education Service (GES) has directed heads of second-cycle schools who collected unauthorised fees or levies from newly admitted students and their parents to refund the money immediately.
The Director-General of the GES, Professor Ernest Kofi Davis, said collecting such payments as a condition for the enrolment of fresh students was contrary to the principles of the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy.
Prof. Davis issued the directive at a press briefing following widespread complaints that some senior high school heads were demanding items, fees and Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) levies from parents before enrolling newly admitted students.
“I, therefore, wish to state clearly that any head of school who has collected money from students or their parents without proper authorisation must refund them,” he warned.
He further cautioned that school heads who allowed unauthorised payments to be collected by third parties on school premises would face severe disciplinary action in accordance with GES regulations.
“We will not allow the actions of a few individuals to undermine a policy that has expanded access to secondary education for thousands of Ghanaian children,” he said.
According to the GES Director-General, the Free SHS policy was introduced to eliminate financial barriers to secondary education and ensure that no child was denied access because their parents or guardians could not afford certain fees.
He stressed that any conduct by school authorities that undermined this objective would not be tolerated.
“Let me be unequivocal: this worrying trend must stop,” Prof. Davis stated.
The GES said it had received reports of some school heads allegedly demanding and collecting various forms of payment from parents and guardians in connection with student admissions.
The Service has consequently directed such heads to immediately stop collecting unauthorised fees and levies, reminding them that the practice violates the government’s policy on free secondary education.
Prof. Davis also urged parents and guardians who encounter such demands to report them to the GES at the district, regional or national headquarters.
Academic calendar
Prof. Davis also highlighted progress made towards restoring stability and predictability to Ghana’s academic calendar.
He said that, for the first time in about six years, students across the various levels of the education system had reported to school within September.
“We have reached a point where students across the various levels of our education system have reported to school within the month of September,” he said.
According to him, the development was the result of sustained efforts and did not happen by accident.
He said the country was now moving towards a more predictable and synchronised academic calendar, allowing parents and other stakeholders to plan more effectively.
Prof. Davis commended stakeholders, particularly teachers and school heads, for contributing to the progress and stressed the need to protect the gains made.
“We are, therefore, committed to protecting the gains made and working to ensure that the academic calendar remains stable, predictable and conducive to effective teaching and learning,” he said.
Teacher unions’ strike
On the strike declared by pre-tertiary teacher unions, Prof. Davis said the GES supported the Ministry of Education’s appeal for the unions to reconsider their decision while efforts continued to address their concerns.
He said the GES management had worked to ensure that teachers’ promotions were mechanised last year and expressed confidence that the process would continue this year.
“We worked hard to mechanise promotions of teachers last year, and you can trust us to deliver this year as well,” Prof. Davis said.
source – www.gbcghanaonline.com
