President John Dramani Mahama says the disappointing performance in the recent West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) is a reflection of longstanding neglect of basic education.
He said the crisis exposes deep problems at the foundational level. “One of the major things that has taken place in the last several years is the neglect of basic education,” he noted while speaking at the National Launch of STEMBox for Basic Schools on December 4,
Mahama listed delayed capitation grants and inadequate support for early-grade teachers as factors weakening the system.
“Inability to send the capitation grants, ensuring that we have quality teachers at a foundational level… because it is that level that prepares the child for secondary and tertiary education.”
He warned that without strong early learning, students simply progress without mastering essential skills.
“Once you don’t get that level right, you will just send the child through a conveyor belt like a factory. And when it comes out at the end, it will be picked out by quality control and said that this one did not do well.”
Mahama stressed that literacy and numeracy must form the foundation. “By the time a child leaves primary school, they should be able to read properly.
“By the time the child leaves primary school, they should be able to write properly. By the time the child leaves primary school, they should be able to do basic arithmetic.”
According to him, future exam performance depends on these core skills. “If we are able to get our children to get these three things right, writing, reading, and arithmetic, then they have the foundation to continue into secondary education.”
He added that the education system must avoid producing students who lack basic competencies.
“Otherwise, it will be a factory that is just pushing them through and pushing them through.
“And at the end of it, you have the situation where a child finishes basic school and sometimes still finds it difficult to write his name.”
