Dear Akufo-Addo, Adutwum, Here is the best form of the free SHS policy that improves the desire of all stakeholders.

Dear Akufo-Addo, Adutwum, Here is the best form of the free SHS policy that improves the desire of all stakeholders.

Our team at educativenewsroom.com has come out with this version of the free SHS policy. This reviewed version will improve the desire of all stakeholders, especially those calling for a review of the free SHS policy.

The aim of the free SHS policy

The free SHS policy aims to take out the element of cost as a barrier to education. Under this free SHS policy, every Ghanaian child who attains the pass mark, as agreed for the year by Ghana Education Service Council, will enjoy a three-year scholarship for secondary education, according to freeshs.gov.gh

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Challenges

Numerous challenges arose after the implementation of the free SHS despite the obvious benefits associated with the policy.

The challenges, mostly financial, ignited the need to review the policy.

The challenges are chiefly financial, because almost all the issues associated with the free SHS policy could be resolved if money is available. Especially on time.

Call for a review the Free SHS policy

Various stakeholders, including the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

The voice of the local stakeholders started the calls for a review of the policy long in advance before the input of the international organizations.

Our alternative

Our team believe the policy needs a review for the better. For the better, because the policy should not be reviewed to reduce the inherent benefits that the policy currently provides.

Reviewed version

The policy should simply introduce a clause that the free SHS policy is applicable to only the top fifty percent (50%) of candidates from every Junior High School in the country.

This means that half of the candidates from every Junior High School will enjoy free SHS.

Benefits of this version

1. First of all, the government will save fifty percent (50%) of the cost of its current expenditure.

2. Secondly, students and parents will take academics seriously to ensure that the students form part of the top half. Unlike the current situation where most students and parents do not take studies seriously because they know they will be promoted in mass.

3. Also, community members will take keen interest in the affairs of Junior High Schools in their communities to prevent private school candidates who join public schools from writing the BECE.

The community members will help the Ghana Education Service to prevent candidates from jumping the academic ladder to write the BECE in their schools, as against Ghana Education Service rules.

4. This policy will also discourage parents from sending their wards to far distant schools where the academic competition may be too tough for their wards to be part of the top half.

5. Teachers in the various Junior High Schools will enjoy teaching serious students.

6. Senior high school administrators will have a second stream of revenue from the fee-paying students to run the schools awaiting the government’s disbursement.

Expected challenges

1. The enrollment in private schools may be reduced because of perceived high levels of academic competition. This will make it less lucrative to run private schools.

2. The enrollment in government schools may increase because of the perceived low levels of academic competition. This will increase workloads at government schools needing extra staff and other resources.

Remedies to the expected challenges

1. Parents who could actually pay SHS fees without any hustle will continue to keep their wards at private junior high schools.

2. Increased levels of enrollment in the rural areas can actually be contained, since most of the class sizes are below the standard.

3. However, the increased need for resources/ staff to address the increased levels of enrollment in public junior high schools in the urban and peri-urban can be compensated for with the number of fee-paying students at the Senior High Schools. However, this assertion may need a case study to understand the situation more.

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