Girl's fate in balance

In spite of the fact that 21-year-old Jessica Crentsil scored aggregate 9 in her JSS examination, she has been struggling to gain admission into a Senior Secondary School for five years without success.

Educational authorities admit that she could not gain admission into an SSS in 2002 because of a computer error.

And now she is barred from entering a public Sector Secondary School because of a directive from the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Education Service which says that only students who graduated from the JSS in 2004 upwards can gain admission.

Frustrated but brilliant Jessica was close to tears when she told her story.

At the Ministry of Education, the Director in Charge of Secondary Education, Dr Okyere justified the directive.

He said; "The things you learnt when you were in school are not the same as those on the syllabus today. How would you be able to match those studying mathematics today?

"That policy is in the best interest of the JSS graduates".

He said although Jessica had good grades she could not gain admission into a public school and advised her to try her luck at a private school.

Jessica who was present during the interview broke down and wept bitterly.

She said she had completed forms for admission into the SSS twice but had been rejected on each occasion.

She said “When I completed JSS in 2002, I could not get help to go to the Secondary School. I left Apam where I was assisting relatives to smoke fish and I came to Accra to stay with an Auntie.”

She later moved to Tema, where she operated a "Space to Space" telephone service.

Unfortunately the owner of the machine sold it and left the country.

Jessica is now unemployed and is still being denied admission into a public school.

Culled from The Insight