A new Model Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) School under construction at Juaben in the Ashanti Region is set to absorb about 10 Junior High Schools (JHSs) when completed.
Funded by the Arab Development Bank, the school is one of five being constructed in the Ashanti Region as government pursues a new concept of JHS, which seeks to equip pupils at that level with 21st century skills.
Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, Minister of Education who briefed the media on the new concept, said bringing JHSs in Juaben under one roof with well-equipped laboratories and other facilities was the way to go as a country to build a solid foundation for the education system.
He said if the concept was replicated across the country, it would not only cut down the cost of running schools, but also promote serene academic environment.
According to the Minister, the goal was to equip Junior High Schools in the country with facilities at the Senior High School (SHS) level to make pupils familiar with them as they progressed from the lower to higher secondary.
‘You cannot do 21st century education without putting the children in places where basic equipment and tools are made available to them,’ the Minister pointed out.
Exposing the children at that level to modern laboratory equipment, would make it easier for them to handle at the higher level and also hasten the learning process for improved outcomes, the Minister argued.
‘That is how you lift the weak middle to make sure you are putting the children in a situation where they have quality six-year secondary experience, which is the lower end before moving to the high school,’ he said
The Minister is on a four-day working visit to the Ashanti Region where he has been visiting selected Senior High Schools as well as project sites of ongoing educational infrastructure.
Accompanied by the Director-General of Ghana Education Service (GES), Dr. Eric Nkansah and heads of other agencies under the Ministry, Dr. Adutwum spent time in every school he visited to counsel students on academic progression and career development.
Source: Ghana News Agency