By Mildred Siabi-Mensah/Gladys Abakah
Takoradi, Jan. 25, GNA – More than 100,000 junior high school graduates who sat for the 2023 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) are yet to report to school.
These students have been placed by the School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) to the various senior high schools and the technical and vocational education and training institutions.
Madam Sally Nelly Coleman, the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Director of Education, said out of the 590,000 students from the metropolis placed across different schools in the country, 453,000 of them had filed for admission, leaving more than 100,000 yet to report to their respective schools.
She expressed worry over the issue and said: “We think this situation demands urgent attention.”
Madam Coleman said the Government was making every effort to ensure that every child of school age in the country went to school, hence the introduction of the Free Senior High School Policy.
“But if the problem is still financial, the parents of these students can approach the Education Directorate so we can find some sponsorships from Non-Governmental Organisations and other institutions who are ready to help,” she said.
Currently, there were lots of vacancies in some category ‘C’ schools in the Western Region, which were ready to admit fresh students, she said.
The circuit supervisors had been encouraged to investigate the issue and promised to reward them if they were able to put in measures to ensure that the students at home went to school, Madam Coleman noted.
“You know it can be a national security threat allowing these number of students to stay at home idle, so we should all ensure they go to school.”
GNA