Free SHS under pressure: The children left behind by placement

There is perhaps no greater disappointment for a parent than watching a child complete Junior High School with hope and excitement, only to remain at home weeks after the placement process because the path into Senior High School has become uncertain. This is why the growing difficulties students face in transitioning from JHS to SHS should concern us all.

As a Ghanaian, teacher and pioneer Regional Coordinator of the Free SHS programme, I have watched its growth with both pride and concern. SHS enrolment increased from approximately 800,000 students in 2016/17 to about 1.3 million in 2024/25, opening doors to thousands of young people who might otherwise have been denied secondary education. While this achievement must be protected, we must also confront the challenges threatening to undermine its promise.

For the second consecutive admission cycle, in 2025 and 2026, concerns have emerged about students struggling to secure or take up placements. This raises an important question: What is the value of a placement if a child cannot report to school and continue learning?

One major source of concern is the school-selection process. Parents do not always participate meaningfully in choosing schools, while some students mistakenly believe that aggregates such as 6–10 or 11–15 automatically guarantee admission to specific Category A or B schools. In reality, placement depends on examination performance and raw scores, available vacancies, programme choices, and boarding or day arrangements. Parents and students therefore need clear, accurate guidance before making these important decisions.

The requirement to include three day schools among the eight choices also deserves reconsideration. In my locality, the nearest senior high school to towns such as Koniyaw, Kokotro and Asokore is approximately 10 kilometres away. Why should a child in such circumstances be compelled to select a day school without sufficient consideration of the practical difficulties involved? A school may be available on paper but inaccessible in reality because of distance, transportation costs and family circumstances.

Furthermore, the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS), which has operated for more than two decades, must inspire public confidence. Reports of students being placed in schools intended for the opposite gender or in special schools they did not select raise concerns about accuracy and verification. Such cases must be investigated and corrected promptly. No child should suffer because of an avoidable administrative error.

Self-placement, which should offer students a genuine second chance, has also become an obstacle. The limited number of schools available on the portal, many of them day schools, restricts access to a wider range of options, including boarding schools. Meanwhile, regional and district resolution centres often lack the resources needed to resolve complaints promptly.

Beyond these immediate challenges, we must preserve the institutional memory of Free SHS. Pioneer staff who helped manage the programme from its inception were either dismissed or transferred. These officers possess valuable practical knowledge of placement procedures, school capacities and recurring challenges. Yet, in many cases, their experience was lost rather than harnessed to improve the system. Why should administrative changes result in the loss of such valuable expertise? Their knowledge and experience should be put to use in strengthening the programme.

Free SHS is bigger than any political party. It belongs to Ghana, and its greatest beneficiaries are our children. Acknowledging its weaknesses is not an attempt to discredit the policy; it is our shared responsibility to protect its achievements and make it work better for every Ghanaian child.

Ahead of the next admission cycle, the government should bring together education practitioners, placement experts and experienced former Free SHS officers to review school selection, placement accuracy, boarding and day-school options, self-placement and complaint resolution.

Ultimately, the true success of Free SHS lies not simply in placing a child in a school, but in ensuring that the child can attend, remain in school and complete the academic year. Every child deserves that opportunity. No child should be left behind.