Education Minister defends 'research-driven' double-track system

Accra, Ghana - Nov 5, 2024 - Ghana's Minister of Education, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum has defended and reaffirmed his support for the double-track system in secondary education, despite mounting calls for its abolition. 

In an interview with Citi News during an unannounced visit to the Presbyterian Boys' Secondary School (PRESEC), Dr. Adutwum emphasized that the system is crucial in expanding educational opportunities and ensuring more students benefit from the government's Free Senior High School policy in an interview with Citi News.

The double-track system was introduced to address facility limitations in high-demand schools, which historically restricted enrollment.

Dr. Adutwum noted that as schools expand their facilities, some have started to move away from the double-track system. However, he stressed that until more institutions have the resources to accommodate larger numbers, the double-track system remains essential.

Dr. Adutwum also highlighted that the double-track system is research-driven and has been successfully implemented in other countries, including the United States.

He challenged critics, asking why PRESEC's implementation of the system has yielded better results if it's inherently flawed.

“This year, a number of schools are moving away from Double Track because they have enough facilities. So the whole premise is this, every young man growing up in Ghana wants to come to PRESEC. What does that mean for us as a nation? We need to provide more facilities so that PRESEC can educate more students for us.

“But until we get those facilities, it makes sense to divide the PRESEC population into three, keep one at home while two of them are here until such a time that you can put up more buildings and all of them will come at the same time. So it’s well thought through.

“This system has been used in a number of countries around the world, including the United States of America. So what we are introducing here is research-driven. If the double track is such a bad thing, Why is it that PRESEC has implemented it and they have gotten better outcomes than when there was no double track?”

Source: Lead News Online