Category: Education

The Ghana Education Service (GES) has initiated a public survey to gather public opinions on the Free Senior High School (SHS) policy and the Double Track System, seeking to assess their impact and identify key challenges affecting students, parents, and teachers. Announced on GES’s official Facebook page on Saturday, February 22, 2025, the survey aims to gauge public understanding of these policies, determine their effectiveness, and explore areas for improvement.

The Free SHS policy, introduced to eliminate financial barriers to secondary education, has been both praised and criticized. While it has expanded access to education, concerns remain about overcrowding, infrastructure constraints, and teaching quality—especially under the Double Track System, which was introduced to accommodate the rising student population. GES is encouraging students, parents, teachers, and the general public to participate in the survey by sharing their experiences, satisfaction levels, and recommendations for reform.

The survey comes as the National Education Forum, a major event reviewing Ghana’s education system, takes place in Ho, Volta Region. The forum, which started on February 18, 2025, has brought together education experts, policymakers, and stakeholders to evaluate the sector and propose solutions. GES noted that the feedback from the survey would be analyzed and incorporated into discussions at the forum, influencing future education policies. The survey marks a critical step in assessing whether Free SHS and the Double Track System are truly meeting their intended objectives or if adjustments are necessary. With education reform at the forefront of national discourse, the responses gathered could play a key role in shaping the next phase of Ghana’s educational landscape.

Starting next week, the Ministry of Education will begin discussions among stakeholders regarding reviews of issues in the education sector. This discussion focuses on the bridge between educational funding and infrastructure gaps and the role of teachers in change in education for a sustainable future.

Professor George Oduro, Chairman of Education Planning and Review Committee. He explained that the debate will consider how the government will increase the funding needed to address infrastructure gaps in the education sector. Professor Oduro said other areas that need to be touched on would improve parental inclusion in teacher wells and school management. “The teacher’s well sits on every pillar and is called to provide accommodation to teachers as it is in the NDC Manifesto as the “teacher’s double”. Therefore, the infrastructure for teacher wells is there.” He said quality control in the education sector is being thoroughly discussed.

“We also deal with quality control and the second pillar will also become quality education. We are committed to basic training, secondary levels, our tertiary formation, TVET, problems, and We look forward to stakeholders in the context of inclusivity being cut,” explained Professor Odulao. He promised that teachers were equipped enough to implement recommendations from the forum.

Knust has approved 50,895 freshmen in grade 2024/2025 with 92,975 applications. Vice-President Professor Rita Akosua Dixon is calling on new students to use academic excellence and digital learning tools. Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (Knust) welcomed a total of 50,895 newly approved students in 2024/2025. Deputy Prime Minister Knust Professor Rita Akosua Dickson announced this at a virtual registration ceremony, indicating that the university has received 92,975 applications.

However, certain restrictions allowed Knust to only allow 50,895 students, including 11,084 doctoral students and 39,811 students in the basic course. Professor Dixon handled the Immy ceremony and emphasized the importance of the event as an important academic tradition formalizing students into the university. “You meet the admission requirements for this university, and I officially recognize them as junior members of Status Pupillary at Kwame Nkruma University of Science and Technology.

They are currently knowledge for sustainable development in Africa. Members of the community who are committed to promoting. They acquire the fundamental values ​​of university integrity, innovation, relevance, excellence and management. Professor Dixon encouraged students to use the digital tools and resources available at Knust. She also asked to assist herself from student faculties, Knust Counseling Centre, and other support services to navigate effectively.

Kumasi University of Technology (KSTU) has approved a total of 10,667 freshmen to pursue a variety of research programs for 2024/2025. This number consists of 6,946 men and 3,721 women, with 65.2% connecting 34.8% and 3,721 women. Announced this, Deputy Prime Minister Professor Gabriel Dowamo said that 10,339 students, 259 post-level and 69 international students were concerned this year. He spoke at the 33rd Registration Ceremony for Kumasi students.

He added that the university held its first second registration session on the Adako Jachie campus as part of its long-term development plan. KSTU currently has the faculties of construction and natural environment, entrepreneurship and corporate development, as well as creative art and technology that operates on the Adakojachee campus. Professor Dwomoh described the notice of registration for the contract between learners and the university, recalling the students that such commitments could put academic progress at risk. He said that Ghana’s leading institution as a technical university holds high academic standards and does not undermine its goals to achieve superior services.

The Deputy Prime Minister advised students to take responsibility and build useful networks to position themselves in higher academic achievements. You should avoid any form of investigative defective behavior that could lead to your layoffs. Professor Dwomoh warned students to use social media carefully, describing the room as a “hydrahead monster” that tends to change the target student who was in school. “We acknowledge that social media is a very convenient way of information, but we should consider that it can be a powerful recipe for brewing misinformation and misinformation from the same token is. So, it’s important to filter out the various content you read from social media, so you don’t get abused,” he advised.

St. John Bosco University of Education, located in Nabrongo in the Upper East region, addressed the government to increase its approval quota to accommodate more students. University officials say the current quota is not sufficient, preventing many eligible applicants from getting approved. The 13th Congregation Ceremony brings current director Dr. Rudolph Nyaaba students to increase the number of universities to help generate internally generated funds (IGFs) for development. “We need to raise the university’s enrollment rate to meet the large number of applicants we receive each year. With a large student population, the university can produce enough IGF to support his development needs. “We’ll do that,” Dr. said. Nyaaba.

Dr. Nyaaba also appealed to Ghana’s Board of Higher Education (GTEC) to recruit additional staff, finding that lack of education and non-teaching staff would undermine the university’s operations. The Acting Principal stressed the importance of refurbishing and retooling the college’s laboratories and workshops to enhance the training of science and mathematics teachers. “University laboratories, workshops and equipment are outdated and not working. These facilities need to be urgently renovated to meet the standards of TVET training schools,” he added. 318 trained teachers graduated at the 13th congregation ceremony. The breakdown of the classification was as follows: 18 students who won 18 students, 153 Upper Division Students who received the second class of Grade 28 students from Grade, 3rd Grade 444. Institutions in the Upper Eastern Region are recognized for academic excellence and discipline. It has a strong reputation for producing highly qualified teachers in science and mathematics. Many of them contribute significantly to society. To improve the quality of teacher training in Ghana, universities are obligated to improve the facilities and strength of their employees.

The management of Accra Academy has handed over a student involved in a bullying incident to the police, following a viral video that sparked public outrage.

In a statement addressing concerns over the footage, which appeared to show a student flogging a colleague with a cutlass, the school assured parents and guardians that swift action had been taken.

“The student who perpetrated the act has been handed over to the police for further interrogation,” the statement confirmed.

According to the school, the incident occurred nearly two weeks ago on 17th January 2024, but was not reported to authorities until the video surfaced on social media.

The four students (three third-year students and one first year student) involved who have been named by the Senior High School are all day students. The victims, four first-year students were also named.

As part of immediate disciplinary measures, the school has directed all the perpetrators to stay away from campus while investigations continue.

“The students involved in the act are all day students and have been asked to stay away from the school pending further investigation,” the statement added.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the machete used in the incident was brought from home and was not a school-owned item.

The school’s disciplinary committee is conducting further inquiries into the matter and has assured all stakeholders that they will be informed of the final outcome.

A team of researchers from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) have unveiled a groundbreaking method of producing high-performance batteries using taro (Kooko or Brobe) peels.

This cost-effective and environmentally friendly innovation, published in the journal Energy Storage, has the potential to revolutionise the energy storage industry by turning food waste into a renewable energy solution.

Dr Daniel Nframah Ampong, the lead researcher and a member of the KNUST Centre for Engineering Materials Research (KCEMR), explained the approach taken by the research team.

“We used an environmentally friendly approach to synthesise activated carbon from taro peels. These waste materials contain some properties or functional groups that we believed at the time would enhance the performance of energy storage devices,” he stated.

The study focused on converting taro peels into activated carbon, which was then tested for its effectiveness in energy storage applications.

According to Dr Ampong, the current market relies on activated carbons that are synthetically produced using toxic and hazardous methods. The KNUST team, however, took inspiration from traditional charcoal-making techniques used in Ghanaian villages.

“We decided to come down to our level and use the process of producing charcoal in our villages. We mimicked that process using crucibles, and at the end, we were able to synthesise the activated carbon, which had similar properties to the commercially available activated carbons,” Dr Ampong revealed.

The biomass-derived material demonstrated exceptional energy storage capabilities, offering a sustainable alternative to conventional battery components.

The innovation aligns with Ghana’s renewable energy agenda, as the country seeks to increase its renewable energy mix.

“The purpose of the research is to get some storage systems to store renewable energies when they are in excess so that when we need them, we would be able to utilise them effectively,” Dr Ampong explained.

The scientists believe that utilizing biomass and biowaste materials, such as taro peels, not only tackles environmental challenges but also drives the advancement of sustainable renewable energy solutions.

“We want to produce something that is eco-friendly with a cheap synthesis process, and the starting materials are locally available.”

Professor Kwadwo Mensah-Darkwa, Dr Ampong’s supervisor and Research Lead of the Energy Materials Research Group, highlighted ongoing efforts to harness biowaste for energy storage solutions.

“There has been a lot of development trying to use these biowaste materials mostly to drive our energy storage agenda. The plan is we want to get an eco-friendly way of creating materials for energy storage devices. This is what we are looking forward to at our lab,” he said.

Prof Mensah-Darkwa also noted that recent investments in laboratory equipment through the KNUST Engineering Education Programme (KEEP) have enhanced their research capabilities.

“We have equipment now where we can test these assembled cells. So now the output of our research is going to be quite effective, and we would be able to look at all other opportunities we have,” he stated.

However, he acknowledged that further material characterisation techniques are required to confirm the properties needed for specific applications, which the department currently lacks.

Looking ahead, Prof Mensah-Darkwa expressed optimism about the long-term potential of their work.

“We know that there is opportunity in this area, and if we build on our expertise, then we can now look at how to scale it up and make an impact. We are a little bit far from building our own batteries, but we are close to understanding how we can do these things locally,” he explained.

This pioneering research could pave the way for Ghana to develop its own battery technology using locally sourced and sustainable materials.

The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has tasked an eight-member National Education Forum Planning Committee to help in finding answers as to how government can sustain the free senior high school policy.

He said the policy remained one of the boldest steps and reforms of the educational system, but acknowledged that the country was struggling with how to finance it.

“Can your committee help in finding answers as to how we can sustain this laudable initiative? And make sure that when we pledge that we provide feeding, we provide it timely, in quality and in the right quantities,” he told the Chairman of the Committee.  

The minister was speaking after leading the members of the committee to take the oath of office and secrecy to mark its inauguration and commencement of work.

Membership

With a two-week ultimatum to submit its report and plan, the committee is Chaired by a former Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, Professor George K.T. Oduro.

Other members are Professor Goski Alabi, Professor Rosemary Bosu, Dr Samuel Awuku and Professor Smile Dzisi. The rest are Kofi Asare, Stephen Owusu and Inusah Shiraz.

Terms of Reference

As part of the Terms of Reference, the committee is to develop a theme and sub-themes to guide the stakeholder engagement, identify key stakeholders in the education sector, including students, parents, teachers, researchers, civil society organisations and development partners.

Other stakeholders are religious bodies, political parties, Ghanaian educational researchers in the diaspora, chiefs, heads of educational institutions, Parliamentary Select Committee on Education among others.

The committee is also expected to develop a stakeholder activity agenda with time allocations, propose a venue and date(s) for the forum, set up a secretariat to document activities and provide a budget for the National Education Forum.

Additionally, the committee is to develop a comprehensive report detailing the findings and recommendations of the forum, draft a national education policy framework and propose an action plan for implementing recommendations within three weeks after the forum and finally, consider any other issue relevant to the organisation of the forum.

Tertiary education

On tertiary education, Mr Iddrisu tasked the committee to also look at “how the country Ghana is responding to the future aspirations of the country.”

He observed that the country did not adequately prepare for the absorption of the exponential increase in numbers of the products of the free SHS.

Mr Iddrisu noted that residential and academic infrastructure were not adequate enough in any of the public universities, describing the situation as a challenge.

The minister said there were 150,000 to 300,000 Ghanaian students who naturally would have aspirations to access higher education and tertiary education. 

Challenges

He said as far as President John Dramani Mahama was concerned, “all is not well,” adding that the President did not pretend to have the answers or the solutions to the “myriad of problems affecting equitable quality provision of education to deserving Ghanaians.”

The minister said the Constitution in Articles 25 and 38 guaranteed every Ghanaian equal opportunities to education, but questioned whether that was the case.

“Is that the case? Have we attained free, compulsory, universal basic education? It is only your committee that can find answers to many of these questions?” he told the committee.

Mr Iddrisu further wondered what affirmative interventions the President and the Ministry of Education, through its executing agencies, could do to address the imbalances and disparity in the provision of equitable, accessible education at all levels of education.

In an acceptance speech, Prof. Oduro thanked the Presidency and the sector minister for the trust reposed on the members, giving an assurance that the committee would work within the constraints of time to deliver as expected.

The Chief Director of the ministry, Maamle Andrews, in a welcome address, explained that the members were carefully selected to ensure a balanced discourse on education and assured the committee that the ministry would do everything to ensure that their work was successful.

Students of Academic City University have successfully organised the institution’s first-ever TEDx event, fostering idea-sharing, insightful discussions and meaningful connections. 

The inaugural TEDx Academic City University event was on the theme: “Ripples to Waves: Creating Impact”. It featured student speakers, engaging conversations and valuable networking opportunities.

A dedicated team of 24 students led by Edem Fiifi Dawson as the Main Lead and Beata Nhyira Ackun as Co-Lead spearheaded the event, marking a significant milestone for the university. 

Platform

This initiative provided a platform for students to exchange ideas, spark innovation and drive positive change in their communities.

The speaker lineup featured prominent speakers such as Chief Executive Officer of EduSpot and Global Teacher Prize Finalist, Cat Davison; Entrepreneur and Gender Activist, Elinam Abla Horgli; Managing Director of Asante and Partners, Eve Asante; Co-Founder, NadeLi Creative, Eugene Awusi-Annan, and a student of the Academic City, Emmanuel Anti.

Speaking about the event, Mr Dawson remarked, “This event is just the start of something bigger. We want it to be a lasting platform where new ideas and great thinking can thrive. 

Ideas

TED is a non-profit organisation devoted to ideas worth spreading.

Started as a four-day conference in California 30 years ago, TED has grown to support its mission with multiple initiatives.

It is a programme of local, self-organised events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TED Talk videos and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection.