Don't use infrastructure challenges to disorganize classes

Kumasi, Oct 19, GNA - Mr Joseph Kwabena Onyina, the Ashanti Regional Director of Education, has cautioned students not to hide behind the temporal education challenges to disorganize academic work.

The current education problems, he said, was surmountable and called for efforts of all Ghanaians to address them.

Mr Onyinah was addressing more than 300 Students Representative Council (SRC) members selected from the 90 Senior High Schools (SHS) in the Ashanti Region at a forum in Kumasi on Monday.

It was organized by the Ashanti Regional branch of Conference of Heads of Assisted Senior High Schools (CHASS), Regional Education Directorate and Ashanti Regional SRC.

It was aimed at interacting with the students' leadership and creating awareness on challenges facing some school heads concerning the admission of 2010/2011 first year students.

Mr Onyinah attributed the major cause of infrastructure and other educational challenges facing some SHS to rapid increase in student population.

He said the region experienced an annual average of 20 per cent increase in SHS population which had put severe pressure on school facilities.

"Facilities provided in SHS are not adequate to correspond to the rapid percentage increase of the students' population," he said.

Mr Onyinah said some laudable interventions put in place by the government in public basic schools had contributed to the increase in student population in the SHS.

He said challenges of infrastructure hindering the admission of first year students should not be politicized but efforts made by all Ghanaians to address them.

Mr Onyinah commended heads of SHS in the region for their initiative and resourcefulness.

Lieutenant-Colonel Abukari Amadu Mahama, the Headmaster of Kumasi Armed Forces SHS and Patron of the Ashanti Regional SRC who presided, commended students in the region for maintaining peace and stability in their schools.

He advised that the temporary challenges should not discourage them but to remain focused in addressing them.