Ghana's first Virtual High School to begin next academic year – Dr. Yaw Adutwum

Minister for Education Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum has strongly indicated that Ghana will have a virtual high school starting from the next academic year.

He announced that an initial 10,000 students nationwide will be enrolled in the Virtual Senior High School (SHS).

This announcement was made during the launch of the Ghana Knowledge and Skills Bank Portal on Tuesday, September 17, 2024, by the Ministry of Communications in partnership with the Education Ministry.

Dr. Yaw Adutwum explained that the virtual high school set to begin next academic year is part of the transformation that the New Patriotic Party (NPP), under the leadership of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, intends for the education sector.

He clarified that the virtual high school will be hosted on the Skills and Knowledge Bank Portal, where students will go through their studies via the platform, which contains content from the approved curriculum.

The Minister revealed that Ghana is collaborating with the Open University in the United Kingdom to build virtual labs that will be utilised by students enrolled in the Ghana Virtual High School.

"This will also allow us to establish the first-ever Ghana Virtual High School. It aims to enroll about 10,000 students who will engage in virtual learning. With the support of the UK Open University, we are building virtual labs.

"This will enable students to virtually dissect a frog, for example. So, students can't say they attended a school without a 21st-century science lab; they couldn't conduct science experiments. Science experiments can now be done virtually, and that is the new Ghana. In fact, some of the virtual labs developed were used in the UK but were created by Ghanaian teachers," he explained.

Dr. Adutwum emphasised that the digitalization of education presents a new opportunity for the nation.

"There will be a significant paradigm shift, and by embracing it and exploring its possibilities, we can establish a better education system that was previously unimaginable.

"Ten years ago, we never imagined having the Ghana Knowledge Bank, which is now second only to what we see in Egypt. With the infusion of AI, we are moving forward and creating the best learning portal," he stated.

Mpuntu Technologies, a wholly Ghanaian-owned company, developed the portal with support from Telecommunication giant MTN and funding from the World Bank.

The Knowledge and Skills portal provides access to over 5 million online library archives, learning resources, and tools for both students and researchers. It is available in multiple languages and offers the option of a personal teacher.