New SHS Placement Policy Is To Improve System - CSSPS

Mr. Isaac Swatson, an officer at the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS), says the essence of government, through the Ministry of Education, to have a new policy on placing children into senior high schools formulated is to improve the system.

Speaking recently at a workshop for education directors and officers on the operations of the CSSPS and key guidelines for placing children in senior high and technical schools, Mr. Swatson disclosed that, among other guidelines, children will select five schools and that, “Children can choose only one school in Category A, two schools in Category B, four schools in Category C, a compulsory one school in Category D and a maximum of five schools in Category E.”

“The categorisation of schools is necessary to avoid the situation where some schools are oversubscribed as some other schools struggle to have their vacancies for students filled. Let me also inform you that there will not be any placement for re-entry candidates or children that completed their junior high schools in the previous years. They will have to write the private Basic Education Certificate Examinations and get qualified to be placed”, he added.

Alhaji Mohammed Haroon Cambodia, the Northern Regional Director of Education, who chaired the workshop, gave the assurance that his outfit will do all within its means to ensure that this year’s school placement by the CSSPS will be very successful.

Mr. Anthony Kwaku Amoah, a public relations officer of Ghana Education Service, who was also a resource person at the workshop, urged the participants to read and be abreast of the new guidelines so as to effectively disseminate the policy issues to parents, children and the public.

“Let us take our time to read the policy document well so that we can tell parents, children and other members of the general public what the policy issues are and what is expected of us in making this year’s school placement one of the best, if not the best, in the history of CSSPS.”

Started in 2005, the CSSPS, which is a secretariat of the Secondary Education Division of GES, places qualified candidates of BECE into public senior high, technical and vocational schools in the country.