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29.11.2022 Education

Former GETFund Administrator calls for institutionalization of apprenticeship in basic schools

Former GETFund Administrator calls for institutionalization of apprenticeship in basic schools
29.11.2022 LISTEN

Mr. Stephen Baffoe, a former Deputy Administrator of The GETFund says deliberate attempts should be made to institutionalise apprenticeship as part of the process of identifying and nurturing talents in the basic schools in Ghana.

He says while the Ghanaian child does the throwing of stones at mangoes and lizards during his or her leisure period, their age mates in Germany will be on an apprenticeship with a master repairer to learn how to fix his/her bicycle or will be on the field learning to play basketball or some other sport.

“It should be possible for leaders of education at the district level together with the District Assemblies to plan some complementary school programmes that allow 13 to 15-year-olds to pick some life skills. In Germany they do this so by the time they are adults, their kids would have mastered a lot of ‘Do It Yourself’ (DIY) skills”, he said.

Mr. Baffoe again explained that this idea of apprenticeships can be extended to basic school leavers who opt to learn a trade instead of continuing to school, adding that “some community skill centres can be created where master craftsmen can train them by adopting a certain standardised syllabus. These centres can be used also to provide training in reading, mathematics and life skills for the patrons. I am talking about an open-schooling system focused on life skills.”

He was delivering the keynote address at a grand durbar to climax the centenary celebrations of the Kintampo Methodist Basic Schools at Kintampo in the Bono East region held under the theme: “Quality and Purposeful Basic Education: An important Foundation for a Prosperous Nation.”

Mr. Baffoe, who is an old student of the school, expressed grave concern about pupils and students haste to sit and pass an examination without corresponding and employable skills which could enable them fend for themselves in future.

“When exam results are released, school heads and managers are in a haste to announce how many grade As or Aggregate 6s were achieved and not how many behaviours changed for the good of society. How many of the A students who leave our basic schools know and practice how not to pollute the environment with waste including polythene waste? How many will adjust or make allowance to contain the needs of their neighbour in the quest to make ends meet?”, he asked.

No laziness

He therefore proposed that the Basic School Curricula should include “nursing in the pupils the desire to be creators and generators of their own employment later in life. They should not be allowed to learn all the lazy ways that keep a society in perpetual poverty before we try to straighten them up.”

“We must return to the Head, the Heart and the Hands Education. We need children who are adequately knowledgeable about their own environment and are able to situate their knowledge in the context of the larger world around them. While we do that, the education we provide must also touch their hearts to have fellow-feeling, love for country and its people and a balanced sense to be proportionate in their quest to get rich or ahead of their fellows; I mean ethical behaviours and candour”, Mr. Baffoe emphasised.

Brief history

Kintampo Methodist Basic schools, which remain one of the best schools in the municipality and beyond, begun as Kintampo Methodist Primary School in 1916 following the appointment of a Teacher-Catechist by the Methodist Church to Kintampo to start the school and also oversee the Local Methodist Church.

Some of the architects of the establishment of the church and the school were Opanin Kwaku Baffoe, Opanin Kofi Biribi, Nana Fakaa, Opanin Kwaku Gyinde, Nana Kwabena Subunu, Opanin Paul Asiam, Opanin Daniel Asiam, Obaapanin Amobea, Nana Kurufie, Opanin Yaw Timpon (Bilson) among others.

In the early years, the school was housed in temporary structures, and it grew and expanded as the years rolled by and a permanent school building was constructed for the primary school in 1945, and was commissioned by Captain Rossell Esq, the then District Commissioner for Wenchi-Ashanti on 28th February, 1945. In 1948, the Methodist Middle School was also started. So, all this while, the Methodist School remained the only Educational Institution in the whole Kintampo area. The first batch of students completed the Middle School in 1952.

Over the years, the Kintampo Methodist Basic Schools have produced a number of prominent distinguished Ghanaians who have served in various capacities in the country and beyond, including the writer of this news story.

The school has produced four national football team captains namely, Baba Yara, Kwasi Owusu, Opoku Nti and Abdul Razak (The Golden Boy). Apart from these players, there were other International stars like Dogomoro, Mohammed Salisu and Baba Musa among others.

Challenges

The school as it stands now has expanded into three streams (A, B, and C) with three headteachers and a staff population of sixty. The total number of pupils now stands at 1,653.

The dilapidated and inadequate number of classrooms require additional space to contain the ever-increasing number of pupils and staff.

Authorities of the school are therefore calling on the government, past students and corporate organisations to assist with the construction of an 11-unit classroom block with ancillary facilities as a centenary project to resolve the challenges of over-population.

The school is also in dying need of a fully-furnished computer laboratory to facilitate the study of I.C.T, which is one key tool for virtually everything one does today.

The school, which is located on the main Kintampo – Techiman Highway, also needs a fence wall to prevent irregular vehicular and pedestrian movements in the school, especially during classes, as well as unwelcome visitors.

Richard Kofi Boahen
Richard Kofi Boahen

Bono, Bono East and Ahafo CorrespondentPage: RichardBoahen

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