Nkroma (Ash), Nov.10, GNA- The Atwima District placed 15th in the national order of merit of the 2004 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), which indicated an improvement over the 24th position of the District in 2003.

Mr Eddy Obeng Darko, the District Director of Education who made this known at an educational rally at Nkroma on Tuesday, said the modest academic improvement was the result of the strengthening of monitoring and supervision of the schools.

A club to help instil discipline among pupils in the town was launched at the rally.

Mr Obeng Darko said the acquisition of academic knowledge without discipline and moral virtues was meaningless. He expressed concern about the poor BECE results in the town and called on parents to cooperate with teachers to improve on teaching and learning.

Mrs Juliana Twumasi Addai, the Human Resource Management and Development (HRMD) Officer at the Ashanti Regional Catholic Educational Unit, called for concerted effort to address the increasing rate of indiscipline and other social vices among the youth. Mallam Iddrisu Salifu, the Assembly Member for Nkroma, advised parents to invest in the education of their children rather than engaging them in child labour.

Nana Kwasi Sarfoh, the Chief of Nkroma, who chaired the function asked parents and guardians to provide the basic needs of their children and also encourage them to study at home.