BASIC EDUCATION-THE BEDROCK OF EDUCATION IN GHANA IS GRADUALLY COLLAPSING.

Undeniably, Basic education is the bedrock of education and in recent times, much attention has been shifted from the basic level of our education ladder which has paved way for so many problems to pop up at the Basic level.

 Examinations are very common to every student in the world. Basic Education Certificate Examination is one of the examinations organised by the West Africa Examination Council in Ghana. A lot of arguments have been raised about it. Many people have questioned the credibility of the BECE results , others have opined that, Junior High School pupils should not be made to write any examination after JHS 3 but should proceed to Senior High School right after JHS 3. As to whether these arguments are right, they are subject to intellectual discourse.

In fact, I had my personal view about the Basic Education Certificate Examination until I visited an Examination centre during the 2019 edition. It was there, I realized that, our Basic Education is sitting on tenterhooks and should these acts of ineptitude and corruption on the part of some supervisors, invigilators, teachers and Examiners continue, Ghana's Basic Education will collapse in the nearby future. At the  Examination Centre, almost every candidate was willing and able to sneak into examinations hall with some foreign materials simply because it was considered the order of the day. The invigilators and the Supervisors were rather perpetrators of examination malpractices. Who was there to watch over the 'Watchmen'?

Teachers were running helter skelter in search of 'apor' for their pupils whilst invigilators were busily collecting some token from pupils in order to offer them assistance. This is highly pathetic.The rational behind the BECE is fading out gradually; in no time, BECE results slips would be used to package roasted groundnut or maize by the seller at roadside.

 In recent times, one would conclude that the BECE results are not the true reflection of the pupils performance. If this assertion is true, then why should pupils sit for the BECE? Is it the surest way of assesing student's performance at the Basic level? Is it even good for a school like  'Pepesa M/A Junior High School, Kwame-Niampah JHS, Bodwesango D/A JHS, Okranum L/A JHS, Dwirigum L/A JHS....... write the same ICT questions with the likes of Morning Star Academy, Soul Clinic International? I demand no answer. I was not surprised at all when a school which registered thirty-eight candidates for the BECE meander its way through to register only two pupils out of the 38 for the 2019 BECE ICT for a reason(s) best known to them.

My Appeal:

I am humbly appealing to the National Teachers Council, Ministry of Education, Ghana Education Service and all stakeholders of our Basic Education to put cogent measures that would reignite the quality standards of our Basic Education in place; for the Bedrock of our Education is in shambles.

The Government of the day ought to come out with policies that would help promote quality education at the Basic level. Much attention must be paid to the teachers' welfare, productivity and general performance of the teacher. Teachers are the agents of quality education and should they be neglected, it will be very difficult to realize the intended objectives set for our basic education.

Long Live All Teachers.

By: Kwame Sarfo.