Upper East performs poorly at BECE

Bolgatanga, Sept 28, GNA - The Upper East Deputy Regional Minister, Mrs Lucy Awuni, on Wednesday expressed disappointment about the poor performance of pupils at the Basic School Certificate Examination for this year and last year.

She told journalists that so far reports received from each of the districts showed that no school scored up to 50 per cent in 2010 and 2011.

In 2010 and 2011, Bongo District scored 28 and 49.6 per cent respectively, Kassena-Nankana East 32.7 and 29.1 per cent respectively, Bawku West had 28 and 25 per cent respectively, Builsa District, 42 and 41 per cent respectively and Kassena Nankana West 52 and 38.7 per cent respectively.

The rest are Talensi-Nabdam, 27 and 38.9 per cent respectively, Bolgatanga Municipal, 44 and 34 .6 per cent, Bawku Municipal 23.2 and 26.1 per cent and Garu-Tempane 27 and 16.1 per cent.

Mrs Awuni said if the trend was not changed the country’s future would be in jeopardy and added “a society that does not care for its own children has no future.”

“Through my own analysis of the situation it has come to my notice, with much irritation, that perpetual lateness, habitual absenteeism, irresponsible use of instructional hours and other forms of indiscipline on the part of some teachers in the Region go unpunished,” Mrs Awuni, a teacher, said.

She called on the supervisory structures of the education system to do more or the Millennium Development Goal 11 that seeks to achieve universal Primary Education would become a fiasco.

Mrs Awuni said there were plans by the Regional Coordinating Council to task Municipal and District Chief Executives and the Education Directorate in the Region to organise a basic level education forum in every district in collaboration with parents and other stakeholders to chart a way forward.

The Regional Director of Education, Mr Paul Panga, said the Directorate had received over 150 computers to be distributed to basic schools and plans were also at foot to hook basic schools to the national grid.

He said the directorate would strengthen its supervisory role and offenders would not be spared.