The Ghana National Association of Private Schools (GNAPS) has clarified that it would still run its trimester system as it is not affected by the new semester system introduced by the Ghana Education Service (GES). GNAPS indicated that prior to the reopening of public schools and the subsequent introduction of the new academic calendar by GES, private schools had already resumed and were following their own academic calendar.
Speaking to A1 Radio in Wa, the President of GNAPS, Dr. Damsus Tuurosong explained that while private schools are not expected to follow the new semester system, it is worthy to note that the Association would have strongly kicked against the implementation of same at private basic schools.
President of GNAPS, Dr. Damasus Tuurosong
“While the public schools were waiting to reopen, we had gone ahead to reopen and we are running our trimester system. Fortunately, I heard the Minister of Education say the new calendar does not affect us. If they had attempted letting it affect us, we would have resisted strongly,” he said.
Dr. Tuurosong said the new system cannot improve the standards of education at the basic level. He argued that the system would rather compound the problems of public basic schools.
“It [new academic calendar] does not add anything to the educational fortunes of the children. I am yet to get any convincing reason why they want to run the semester system. No plausible reasons have been given to us. The system would have been due for change if there had been some research to show that those who go on the trimester system are disadvantaged in one way or the other. The advantages of running the trimester system are more than the semester,” he argued.
The President of GNAPS who doubles as Proprietor of the Tupasso Centre of Academic Excellence at Wa, the Upper West Regional capital continued to say “children would go to school for three to four months, go and sit and rest; a deserved rest and come back. These are young brains, if they spend so many months at school, they get to a point of saturation where they can take it no more. They need a couple of weeks to go and rest and come back with renewed energy”.
He said the new system does not also favour the teachers, the reason for the agitation by the Teacher Unions.
Meanwhile, the Ranking Member of Parliament’s Select Committee of Education and Member of Parliament for Akatsi North, Peter Nortsu-Kotoe has expressed some disquiet about the introduction of the new semester system for Kindergarten, Primary and Junior High School students.
He argued that pupils at the lower levels of education may not be able to cope with the stress of the new system along with its attendant effects.
Four major teacher unions have also raised reservations about the announcement by the Ghana Education Service (GES) of a new academic calendar for public schools.
According to the teacher unions, the Service failed to engage widely before making the announcement.
A1radioonline.com|101.1|MHz Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Ghana