Academic year will revert to 1991 system

The Ministry of Education on Tuesday announced that the academic year for Senior Secondary Schools (SSS) will now start from September-August as it used to be in 1991. Consequently, the SSS Certificate Examination will be held in May/June each year, beginning in 2001. Professor Christopher Ameyaw-Akumfi, Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, told a press conference that this was necessary in order for Ghana to participate in the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).

According to him, Ghana can only join in the WASSCE if its senior secondary school examinations are held by June. The Director-General explained that those to be affected by the transition would be students admitted to senior secondary schools in January 1999, 2000, and 2001.

"These batches of students will remain in school for two academic years and two terms after which they will write their final examinations (SSSCE). Prof. Ameyaw-Akumfi said the transition would run for three years up to 2003.

"The SSS will revert to three academic years, running from September to August every year thereafter." To ensure that Junior Secondary School (JSS) pupils fit into the system, he said, as from 2001, JSS pupils will write their Basic Education Certificate Examination in April.

He said this would help maintain a common academic year for all levels of education in the whole country and would facilitate transition from one stage to another within the same calendar year.

"It would also enable teachers who wish to upgrade themselves to conveniently take their students through the academic year before proceeding to the university and other tertiary institutions of learning.

"Similarly, posting of teachers to replace those on study leave would take place at the beginning of the academic year and not in the third term as it currently prevails," Prof. Ameyaw-Akumfi said.

The Director- General said an additional period of 40 minutes has been added to each school day, and two extra hours for each weekend to make up for any loss in the SS school calendar. The school calendar has also been increased from 40 to 44 weeks.

Prof. Ameyaw-Akumfi urged parents, guardians and the public to co-operate and ensure that school children make profitable use of their after-school hours, weekends and holidays in order to make up for the transition adjustment in their timetable.