A retired educationist Mr. Robert Ajene has said that Ghana’s education system is in a big crisis because institutions no longer churn out the kind of highly qualified professionals that can deal with many of Ghana’s chronic problems.
He told Azongo Albert on Day Break Upper East Wednesday that governments of both the past and present have paid lip service to education in Ghana; this has therefore put the country’s educational institutions in a bad position to give out the best that is actually needed. Institutions according to him are highly constrained logistically but yet so much is expected from them.
“Governments now and in the past have paid lip service to education and education is a tool for national development. We are fifty years and above after independence but for me as an educationist I cannot be very proud that how we have risen up the ladder in education is what we expected. Partly you can blame me but it will come to the same thing. If am a good teacher and you won’t give me chalk, you won’t give me register to mark, teaching in a class where children are lying on their belly and yet you want me to produce the best? That is impossible” he said.
In 1987, Ghana’s education system was rationalized because of the fear of production of too many graduates only for white color jobs. This according to him has not changed anything because institutions in Ghana still produce graduates who are only out searching for white color jobs with only a few technically minded graduates.
According to him, the proposal to elevate polytechnics to the status of technical universities is laudable and must be highly commended but warned that it should be given a high priority in order to get the best.
The 77 year old retired educationist who is also the founder of Bolgatanga polytechnic however expressed worry over the infiltration of the education system with so much politics and blamed members of parliament from the northern sector of Ghana for failing to fight the cause of quality education in northern Ghana. He blamed the northern members of parliament for failing to enquire and conduct a forensic audit of the use of monies given to the north by the Queen of England to help develop education in the north because the north lacked behind as compared to the south that had education for many years.
By: Azongo Albert | A1radioonline.com | Ghana
