Ranking Member on Parliament’s Education Committee, Peter Notsu-Kotoe wants government to focus on addressing the many challenges bedeviling secondary education in Ghana rather than seeking to replace textbooks with laptops.
This comes on the back of the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia’s statement that the government through the Ministry of Education is preparing to replace textbooks with laptops in senior high schools across the country.
Reacting to the proposal in a Citi News interview, Mr. Nortsu-Kotoe said the move is a misplaced priority and should be relooked.
“There are a number of challenges that the government is unable to solve. We don’t have enough money to pay for the supply of foodstuffs to senior high schools so the students are poorly fed. The challenge of accommodation, the teacher is teaching over 80 pupils in the same class which is a violation of the teacher-pupil ratio so if we want to introduce the supply of laptops, it is a good idea but it is wrong at this time because we are not able to solve the challenges.”
Vice President, Dr. Bawumia disclosed the proposal while speaking at the 60th Anniversary celebration of the Hohoe Evangelical Presbyterian Senior High School in the Volta Region.
He further disclosed that the government hopes to implement the initiative before the end of 2023.
Groups such as the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT) have already expressed skepticism about the policy.
