The former Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Education, Kwasi Kwarteng, has maintained that the double-track system of the Free Senior High School (FSHS) Policy is not a curse as critics claim.
Speaking on Joy Prime National Dialogue on Free SHS on Friday, February 14, Mr. Kwasi Kwarteng stressed that the double-track system has been the best intervention since the implementation of FSHS.
According to him, while the double-track system may have its challenges, it has a significant advantage as it provides equal access to education for students from both rural and urban areas, bridging the geographical gap.
“Double-track is the only system that allows even the ordinary student from the rural areas and the urban areas to have access to the schools in the urban areas, and so I’ve always maintained that when you paint a picture as if double-track is a curse, it’s not.”
He revealed that the main motivation behind the implementation of the system was not, as commonly perceived, a lack of accommodation but rather a consequence of the school placement system. He explained that a large number of students who pass their exams prefer to attend top-tier schools categorized as “A” schools, resulting in severe overcrowding at these institutions.
“The reason has more to do with the placement system that we use, where many students who pass their exams may opt for the category “A” schools or the high-performing schools and you may have to place them.”
View this post: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1HcG5A1GuY/
Mr. Kwarteng therefore advised that if the double-track system were to be abolished, the government should prioritize upgrading the other categories of second-cycle schools. This, he argued, would ensure that students who pass their exams are satisfied with their placements, regardless of the school’s category, thereby reducing the pressure on top-tier schools.
“The only way to do away with the double track sustainably is also to improve the other schools so that if students do not get, let’s say, Wegehey, they can get a school that is almost equal or closer to Wegehey.”