Double Track System - Why It Must Go!

THE government at the introduction of the Double Track system into the Senior High School (SHS) system projected that it is going to be with us for the next five to seven years.

Unlike the old system, the new system is expected to have two streams with one named Gold and the other Green.

The Gold and the Green streams since last year have been running a semester system unlike the single-track that runs three terms.

The introduction of the new system however, generated divergent views with the proponents insisting that it would absorb more students into the SHSs and increase enrolment while reducing the class size among others.

Critics of the new system accused the government of not consulting stakeholders and accused it of introducing a system that cannot guarantee quality education.

They maintained that the new policy is not a panacea to quality education and suggested that rather provision of adequate infrastructure and logistics be a priority.

It appears that the government is listening and has undertaken a number of projects targeted at eliminating the Double Track system in SHSs across the country.

In all, a total of 804 infrastructural projects under the SHS Intervention Project being financed with government funds and part of the US$1.5 billion Ghana Educational Trust Fund (GETFund) earmarked for financing of educational infrastructure in the various SHS across the country.

The Ghanaian Times has in its possession a compilation of the projects commenced in 2017, which are at various stages of completion.

They include classrooms, dormitories, assembly halls and other critical infrastructure needed at SHSs. Hopefully, when completed the projects are expected to support efforts at eliminating the Double Track systems from the second year of the SHS education in the short term.

"With the way these projects are being undertaking, we are confident that within three years, the Double Track system will be no more with us," Mr Vincent Ekow Assafuah, Head of Public Relations at the Ministry of Education was quoted as saying.

We are happy that the government is expanding access to secondary education as it tries to solve the problems that have emerged as a result of the implementation of the free education in Ghana.

We commend the government for taking on board suggestions that were made in the aftermath of the implementation of the free secondary education policy to contain the huge numbers which have been enrolled at the various secondary schools.

We are hopeful that with the completion of the projects, the Double Track system would once again be replaced with the single track system which many believe is the best system for the country.

We look forward to the provision of other amenities including recruitment of adequate number of teachers to man the classrooms to teach the students.

We urge all to support the Ministry of Education to expand access to education at the secondary school level.

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