In recent times, the academic performance of most students in Ghana
after final examinations has been a cause to worry about. This problem arises
due to various factors which have been put across board but are yet to be
tackled. Different people have shared varied ideas concerning the above topic
and I stand to share my own opinion on the situation at hand. The field of
education and the academia bring along multiple hands on board such as
teachers, government, parents and the students. My focus however will center on
how well the teachers and government can play their roles effectively to reduce
this social canker.
In view of this, my first problem will base on poor teacher-student
relationship. Most teachers in Ghana I must say are authoritative. They always
want to put their instructions and views across while mostly denying students
the platform to share their ideas as well. This causes students to fear them
and sometimes lose concentration in their class. For some reasons, students
term such teachers as “unfriendly” and decide not to join their class or pay
attention to whatever they teach. I must say that, this behavior of some
teachers puts off students’ zeal for learning and in the end reflects in their
performance. Teachers must therefore learn to create a friendly atmosphere in
their classroom where students can freely ask questions and contribute the
quota to whatever lesson they are receiving. They should also make friends with
students in order for them to openly tell their problems and the teachers’
shortfalls during class hours. In so doing, we are sure to boost students’
performance by a higher percentage.
Again,
most students have a poor command over the English language. One reason to this
is that, there are not sufficient English language textbooks and teachers in
schools. Most qualified teachers shy away from the subject due to reasons best
known to themselves or for fear of misguiding the students. The supply of
government English grammar and reading textbooks too are not enough. This is
why you will see two or more students sharing one textbook and they begin to
play instead of following the lesson. At the end of the lesson, the student is
unable to read properly not to think of answering a simple comprehension
question correctly. This aspect of concern is more worrying because, most
subjects in schools today are based on reading and understanding to able to
give meaningful answers to questions. In this bid, where there is poor command
over the language could be suicidal to students’ performance. Among the reasons
to poor command over the white man’s language is also the problem of speaking
vernacular in school. Most teachers speak the local language to students who in
turn reply them in the same manner. This too can affect students’ performance
since speaking the English language can make room for corrections and new
words. In all, teachers must muster courage to teach the language since that
will make room for them to learn as well. Government must do well to supply
enough (English language) textbooks to help our future leaders have command
over the language. The school should also be good English speaking grounds for
teachers and their students for effective communication and learning process.
Additionally, lack of basic facilities in schools and communities is
another problem. Most public and private schools these days lack facilities
that will challenge the minds of their students. How many schools have well
stocked libraries, laboratories, theaters, studios, just to mention a few? Yet,
it is obvious that these facilities help to ensure sound and happy learning
experiences among students. Where these facilities are lacking, students are
dull and cannot have healthy competition with fellow endowed schools. This also
makes learning theoretical and boring for students. However, a more practical
atmosphere will enable students to gain retentive memory on the lesson quicker
than a theory-based class. The libraries in the communities too are either
stocked with archaic books or not functioning at all. Youth clubs these days seem
old fashioned in most communities while recreational facilities such as zoos,
botanical gardens and national parks seem a thing of the past. We lack all
these things as a nation and yet we strive to attain the same level of
development as some smarter countries who know the essence of these facilities.
We end up bringing up inexperienced students into job markets and when they
fail, we try to apportion blames. Ghana must wake up from the slumber and
tackle the problem of insufficient learning and recreational facilities in
communities and schools, if it will thrive and produce whiz kids and gurus for itself.
Also, there is the problem of lack of motivation. Students in most
schools are no more given the motivation to want to learn. Awards and
scholarships that motivated brilliant students have been withdrawn in most
schools. What has however been implemented is caning. Where both brilliant and dull students who
fail to perform are whipped and punished instead of at least being told their
mistakes and corrected. This behavior has rendered most students relaxed and
complacent. It also generates low competition in the classroom and during
examinations. Teachers do not motivate their students through little rewards or
encouraging words, schools refuse to hold award ceremonies for their wards,
while government will not provide job avenues for graduates. These entirely sum
up to making students less motivated and in the end, performing less at examinations
or on the job market. Brilliant but needy students can be helped and motivated
with scholarships and funds to enable them soar higher in their academic
pursuits. Also, schools should frown from not organizing speech and prize
giving ceremonies where deserving students can be awarded and put on the urge
of doing more. Government should also organize workshops and seminars where
students can be inspired and talked to on effective ways of becoming successful
in their various areas of interests. Quizzes and award winning competitions
such as “British Council’s The Challenge” and “(the almighty) Science and
Mathematics Quiz”, should also be put on the rise to enhance healthy
competition among various schools and students.
Finally, retrogressive practises are another problem. For instance,
teachers still hold on to old methods of teaching such as what I call the “lecture
process”. By this I mean that, most teachers are interested in coming to class
and talking till the end of the period without imparting anything meaningful
especially to students of basic and second cycle institutions. What these
teachers must know is that students at that level need references to whatever
they are taught. Students must however be given notes and textbooks where they
can refer to and make private studies on their own. Also teachers do not give
room for students to research but go along and “spoon feed” their students. When
this happens, the learning process becomes incomplete and students are found
wanting when they face questions. Students who are allowed to do their own
research are given the chance to learn new things on their own which makes answering
questions easier. Also as a country, we must learn to adjust to the
technological advancement in our new world. The time where notes are written
and compiled and teachers write with pens on board everyday is fast changing. We
should cultivate the use of appliances such as laptops, tablets, projects and
computers in our system of education. For instance notes can be put on a pen drive
for all students to copy onto their computers. Also, some assignments can be
typed for teachers to enhance typing skills in students. All these will help
put us on the global market and enhance the academic performance of students;
it will also help save time and make teaching and learning easy and fun for
both teachers and their students.
I hope these few concerns and solutions of mine will reach safe hands
and will be adhered to so that Ghana can be a better place for students and
academic excellence. Then, we can shy away from having to travel to foreign
lands for better education. A journey of a thousand miles as is always said
begins with one step.
