The current state of school placement leaves a great deal to be desired – Former NITA boss

A former Director General of the National Information Technology Agency, NITA – has proposed six ways to deal with the challenges of the recently computerized schools selection and placement system CSSPS in our educational system in Ghana.

Dr George Atta Boateng said ”gradually, we are losing the best Public School Admission System in the country” and stated that there is the urgent need to do something about the recent challenges regarding the placement system since the public is losing trust in the system.

Dr George Atta Boateng, made these proposals on his Facebook wall and call on the Ghana Education Service and the Ministry of Education to consider his proposals.

Kindly read the full statement below

The current state of the Computerized Schools Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) leaves a great deal to be desired. And it appears, that gradually, we are losing the best Public School Admission System in the country.

To restore public confidence and ensure that our future leaders get placed in their preferred SHS on MERIT, I propose that:

1. Placement should be broadcast live on National TV, and the results instantly sent to competing BECE candidates through SMS.

The interregnum between the time Placement is done and results released to these Candidates is the source of all the brazen and gargantuan ‘DONKOMI’ admissions to Category ‘A’ schools.

2. All declared Vacancies [program by program] by Heads of Senior High Schools should be published before the live broadcast. We need to know what they have, before we can give, albeit transparently.

3. The MOE/GES should revert to the 30% Catchment Area Allocation Policy, which gave opportunities to BECE candidates emanating from Public schools within a 10 mile/16km radius from the so called Category ‘A’ schools. The current wholesale Policy, as introduced by the MOE/GES since 2018, is the bastion of all the corruption related activities. It virtually offers NO ROOM FOR ACCOUNTABILITY.

4. The MOE/GES should immediately reinstate the Technical Working Committee(TWC), which was composed of Representatives from CHASS, WAEC, GES, PTAs and CSOs. This committee served as the Policy implementation and conflict resolution body of the CSSPS. To date, no reason has been adduced for it’s dissolution since 2017.

4. GES/MOE should separate the role of the CSSPS from that of the FREE SHS Secretariat. The two are mutually exclusive. In fact, It does not even make sense to have a Secretariat running FREE SHS at the expense of the VAT/E-LEVY/CST/GETFUND/COVID-19 Tax Payer; in a moribund economy, when there is a whole Secondary Education Unit under GES capable of doing same.

5. GES/ MOE must resort to the use of RAW SCORES for Placement. ONLY RAW SCORES! That is the foundation upon which the CSSPS was developed. If we can’t have this, then we should just hand over the entire Placement exercise to Heads of SHS.

6. The Superintendents of GES/MOE should stay away from the CSSPS Secretariat. Hands off!!! They should simply CHOP THEIR LANE INSIDE!

I hope these proposals make sense to MOE/GES, especially now. A stitch in time saves nine.