teachers

Assin Foso (C/R), Apr.18, GNA - Stakeholders in education in the Assin District, on Friday, tasked the district directorate of education, to be firm in dealing with teachers who drink or absent themselves from school, to ensure improved academic work, to stem the falling standards of education in the district.

They also called for the transfer of teachers who have been at post for longer than ten years.

The stakeholders, including community leaders, parents and assembly members, made the call at a forum organised at Assin Foso, to discuss the school performance appraisal meeting on last year's BECE results in the district.

In their opinion, pupils in private schools were performing better than those in the public schools, because the private schools were properly supervised and the promotion of their pupils, based on merit.

Earlier, the District Director of Education, Mr Johnson Omudie, had announced that measures have been put in place to address the issue, through provision of more textbooks and the strengthening of school management committees and Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs). He said supervision in schools had also been intensified, while efforts were being made to have more qualified teachers posted there, alongside organising regular in -service training programmes for those at post.

Mr Omudie, said the district was among 40 deprived districts the Ghana Education Service have mapped out for further assistance, to boost educational standards through the improvement of educational infrastructure and support for needy pupils.

On his part, an assistant director of education in-charge of supervision, Mr Felix Arhinful, suggested that, like the publication of the performance of schools in the SSSE, a similar measure should be taken on the BECE results, to ensure that all basic schools took steps to ensure that their pupils become more serious with their studies. The District Chief Executive, Mr Kwabena Karikari Apau, who presided, cautioned headteachers against the use of pupils as farm hands and expressed concern about the inability of the GES to pay teachers on transfer, their transfer grants or travelling and transport (T&T) allowances. 18 AprIL 04