Today we learned about the education system in Ghana. Some interesting things I learned are:
* In Ghana, public schools are the best schools and private tend to be the worst, the opposite of US schools
*School is compulsory and free and starts at age 4
*Children attend local schools until they reach secondary school but then they are assigned to a secondary school that may be far from their home. So far that they cannot live with their family and commute. They either live in a boarding facility at the school or in some type of private accommodations.
*They are assigned to the secondary school by a computerized lottery system.
The benefits of being assigned away from their home is that the students become exposed to other languages and cultures in their country. The hope is that citizens will become more familiar with each other and start to identify themselves as Ghanaians rather than simply citizens of their own region. It helps to promote national pride and identity.
*While it may seem strange to us in the US to send children away to school while very young teenagers, for this society it is a normal and accepted practice. It is similar to students in the US going to college far away, it is just that in Ghana they start at an earlier age. It is seen as a way to foster independence and responsibility.
*There are some problems with the system however. One problem is that at the secondary schools there is a high rate of students, in particular female students, being preyed upon and taken advantage of by their teachers or local men. Drop out rates and teen pregnancy is very high at some schools. The situation is better if it is a boarding school where the students after school activities can be supervised. In areas where there is no boarding school and students live in apartments the problem is worse.
*Another problem that occurs is a language disconnect. A student might be assigned to a region that speaks a different local dialect than their own. This means the student must learn a second language to understand the lessons at their assigned school. This would be similar to a student in our area being assigned to a school in southern Texas where everyone speaks Spanish. The student would have to learn Spanish since all lessons would be taught in Spanish, not English.
*Some parents do not see the value of their children attending school, especially girls, and keep their children at home to do house chores, farm work, etc. Some NGO's partly address this problem by bribing the parents with food. The food is provided to the families if they will keep their children in school.
*Students must pass an exam to go on to a university. Must achieve a C or higher to advance.
*Student performance is monitored periodically with testing, as it is in the US, but often students are being taught in a local dialect and tested in English.
*There are no dual credit, AP, or IB programs offered in Ghana but students are able to choose electives at the secondary school level to prepare them for a trade.
*In Ghana, students do not switch rooms for different classes. The teachers actually go from room to room when classes change during the day.
*Books and technology are missing or in short supply in many Ghanaian schools. Books are often shared by students at a rate typically of 1-3. Since books are hard to come by, the teachers want to protect them and will often not allow students to take the books home to study.
If no computers are available, the students will practice keyboarding on a labeled piece of cardboard.
*Textbooks are locally written and produced and examples in the book reflect the culture and environment of Ghana.
*Schools love to get donations of books and teaching materials to supplement their classrooms.
Art Center
In the afternoon we attended a local art center. This name does not accurately describe the facility as we think of it in the US. It is basically an open air market where local people sell crafts and artwork. Anyone who has traveled abroad will understand the setting. There are hundreds of booths set up within a small area and under some type of roof. This creates long dark alleys.. Each booth contains one or two people who are intent upon convincing you to buy their merchandise. As you walk by they will shout at you, question you, pull on you, step in front of you, etc. They will do anything they can to get you to enter their little stall where they will very aggressively try to convince you that their items are unique, the best price, and that you desperately need several of them. The trick is to try and find authentic, locally made crafts (not junk from China) and then haggle with them to get the best price possible. Sometimes the best thing to do is just walk away from them and then they will drop their price. However, some will chase you down and even out of the market if they think you were toying with them. It is great. These markets are one of my favorite places to visit when traveling.
After this, it is time for a break at the seashore.
Pictures from the Day
I never get tired of watching the Ghanaians carry huge loads on their heads. They can walk really fast and the load doesn't even wobble. That is real talent.
Alley ways of the art center.
We watched these guys turn big chunks of wood into beautiful statues and bowls. These wood crafters use local wood for their items.
Endless dark alleys.
The people taking care of us. (l-r) guide Akem, driver Chris, and hostess Ophelia.
Ophelia is gorgeous everyday and a very independent and accomplished Ghanaian woman. I am having a dress made exactly like the one she is wearing in this picture. It is a traditional African style dress.
I bought a bracelet from this man. The inscription on it is an African symbol that means hope. He makes the bracelets out of the same metal as Ghanaian coins.
The sign says keep the beach clean. Clearly no one takes the sign seriously.
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