Lawyer and energy expert Lom-Nuku Ahlijah has raised concerns over declining supervision in Ghanaian schools, warning that increasing student populations and inadequate investment in education are contributing to rising indiscipline on campuses across the country.
His remarks follow a disturbing incident at Ada Senior High Technical School, where four students were arrested by the Ghana Police Service after a viral video showed a student wielding a cutlass and threatening colleagues on campus.
Speaking on The AM Show on JoyNews on May 25, Mr Ahlijah said the growing teacher-to-student ratio in schools has made effective supervision increasingly difficult, particularly following the implementation of the Free Senior High School (Free SHS) policy.
According to him, Ghana is facing a major challenge in maintaining discipline and proper supervision in schools due to overcrowding and inadequate educational resources.
He explained that the sharp increase in enrolment under the Free SHS programme has not been matched with the necessary investment in infrastructure and staffing.
“Supervision is less than it used to be, and it is a fact we cannot run away from. That is the reality on many school campuses. Supervision is not what it used to be,” he stressed.
Mr Ahlijah argued that while the Free SHS policy has expanded access to education, it has also created unintended challenges because of inadequate preparation for the surge in student numbers.
“There has not necessarily been the corresponding investment in more teachers and more infrastructure,” he noted.
He further maintained that parents must continue to play a central role in monitoring the behaviour and development of their children, stressing that teachers are becoming increasingly overstretched.
“The primary responsibility for ensuring that students behave the way they are supposed to remains a parental responsibility,” he said.
Mr Ahlijah observed that the growing number of students in schools has made it difficult for teachers to provide adequate supervision and individual attention.
“If you are relying solely on a teacher to monitor your child in school, the reality is that you are not likely to get that level of attention because there are simply too many students for the supervision required,” he stated.
He warned that unless significant reforms are introduced in the education sector, incidents of violence and indiscipline in schools could continue to rise.
“That is why we are seeing more of these incidents, and I can assure you that until significant changes are brought into this space, we may continue to witness some of these things,” he added.
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