Accra, Aug 27, GNA - The first batch of 33 students of the Abossey Okai Methodist Junior High School (JHS) who wrote the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), 2011, scored 100 percent. Master Fredrick Boakye, who scored the highest, had aggregate seven while Master Prince Baafi Opoku had aggregate nine and three other students including female, Ms Sandra Bonney had aggregate 11 each.

The remaining 28 students scored between aggregates 12 and 24. Mrs Patience Patricia Amelorku, Headmistress of the School, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) on Wednesday, said there was the need for every teacher to exhibit greater consciousness, commitment and sacrifice to efficiently teach his or her students. She said the primary responsibility of ensuring quality teaching and learning was to ensure greater accountability between the teachers and their students to create a friendly environment that would encourage the children to seek help in their academic work. Mrs Amelorku said because the school was going to face its first JHS test, she invited the parents and advised them that in their efforts to counsel their wards they should constantly liaise with the teachers to bring them up holistically. She also made the parents understand that the perception that students in public schools did not study was a thing of the past and urged the children to study and stop depending on information from their peers. "I put a lot of confidence in my children who gave me the assurance that they can do it," she said adding, 93who told you it was the preparatory schools alone who can do it. We have done it due to discipline and proper supervision from both the students and teachers". The Headmistress reiterated the fact that community ownership of schools and the attendant motivation of teachers were crucial in the development of high calibre of human resources. "If communities own the schools in their respective areas and do well to motivate the teachers, then they will be encouraged to go extra mile and this will help in their retention in the schools," she stressed.

On the performance of the Abossey Okai Methodist JHS students, Mr Theophilus Tetteh Chaie, Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, said motivating teachers was the key to improving the quality, accessibility and relevance of education. He said; 93Government is committed to investing in people and I can assure you that teachers will be motivated to enable them to play their roles effectively towards attainment of this goal." The MP said government would continue to collaborate with the District Assemblies to upgrade basic school infrastructure throughout the country. He called on the parents not to shirk their responsibilities so that together; 93we can have a holistic development of the child in a congenial atmosphere of partnership and solidarity." He congratulated Mrs Amelorku and her teachers for their hard work and diligence, which he described as worthy of emulation and urged them to exhibit the same in the years ahead. 27 Aug. 11