More girls drop out of school in West Akyem District

Asamankese (E/R), June 6, GNA -Many girls dropped out of school in the West Akyem District as they advanced from the Kindergarten to the Junior Secondary School level.

This was disclosed by Rev. Emmanuel Antwi, West Akyem District Director of Education when he briefed the District Assembly about the educational situation in the district. He observed that, the intake of boys and girls at the Kindergarten level in the district were almost the same, 4,089 for boys and 4,079 for girls.

Rev Antwi however observed that, at the primary level, the girls out-numbered the boys-15,285 girls and 14,256 boys. He said the trend changes when the pupils get to the Junior Secondary School level with the enrolment tilting in favour of the boys, 5,280 boys and 4,429 girls.

Rev. Antwi said under the Government's National Youth Employment Programme and with the support of the West Akyem District Assembly, 133 teaching assistants have been employed to augment the existing teaching staff in the district.

He said, 129 untrained teachers in the district had also enrolled in the Untrained Teachers Diploma Course under the Basic Education Programme and said those teachers would be writing their first semester examination in August this year. The District Director said out of the 1,770 teachers at the basic level in the district, 579 were untrained. Rev. Antwi said the district has a total of 178 primary schools, 144 public schools and 34 private ones and also has 106 Junior Secondary Schools (JSS), 92 public and 14 private schools.