Free SHS: Repeated students ‘rule’ laudable – GNAT

The Ghana National Association of Teachers(GNAT) has lauded the government’s decision not to cater for students who are repeated because of non-performance in the government’s much touted Free SHS policy.

According to GNAT, the move will rather spur the children to be more studious vis a vis the programme.

Minister of Education, Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, during a press conference on Thursday indicated that the Free SHS policy won’t cover repeated students in their extra year of study under the Free Senior High School education policy.

“We said you can carry your free SHS for three years because that is the duration of your study. So if you go to the first year, we will pay. You repeat your first year in year two we will pay. When you get to the second year in year three we will pay. But for year four we won’t [pay their fees].”

Eventhough GNAT has commended the initiative, General Secretary, David Ofori Acheampong said the government should ensure, a fair distribution of materials so that students from deprived areas are not disadvantaged.

“For me if the rule is that you did not meet the grade, you lose the scholarship, I don’t have a problem with that, that will serve as a motivation for a lot more of our students to get more serious; It’s important to look at that as well.

“Number 2, it is equally important that if that is going to be the case then we must press evenly and equitably, resources that are needed to give all the students a level playing field, because you cannot talk about availability of text books in Accra as against the absence of those text books in other areas. So we are going to monitor at the inception of the programme in September, we do a lot of the monitoring to find out if all the resources available to the schools in the urban centres are the same as against that in the rural areas.”