There is a saying that one life transformed by education has the propensity of affecting many. It is on this grounds that education is being made accessible to many Ghanaian children. It is also believed that an increase in literacy rate has direct corresponding impact in the country’s development.
That notwithstanding, it is quite clear that Ghana as a country will not get the desired outcomes if quality education is not guaranteed.
In one of my usual tours of the Nandom Municipality within the week, I was struck by what I saw at the Tantuo Primary School. It was indeed, disheartening and soul-destroying.
Tantuo M/C Primary School is found in the Nandom Municipality in the Upper West Region. The school has a population of over three hundred (300) pupils.
The sad aspect is that pupils of this school lie on their stomachs to write. In some of the classes, there is no single desk for the pupils to sit on. This left them with no option than to lie on their bellies to write. The two classes that seemed to have very few furniture are broken beyond repair and very dangerous for use.
The repercussions of this according to the headteacher and other staff are that some of the pupils fall asleep as they lie down to write. The pupils are unable to properly develop their writing skills. They, therefore, have very horrible handwriting. Besides that what is more disturbing is that most of the pupils develop pneumonia as a result of the severe cold emanating from the cemented floor. These are very worrying and disturbing to the headteacher and the parents. Parents are very worried about their children’s health, handwriting and dirty uniforms.
A mother of one of the pupils bemoaned the constant washing of her ward uniform. This she blamed on the cemented floor the children lie to write.
When this reporter asked the headteacher Mr. Raymond Bebugr whether or not they have written to the Municipal Assembly for help, he said the assembly is aware of the plight of the pupils. According to him, he had written letters and served the assembly not ones, not twice but many times yet he had no response.
The headteacher added that the community have decided to start contributing Ghc0.50 every Monday so that they can buy some furniture for their children. He said he does not know the amount they have contributed so far because he and his staff have no hand in the parents’ fundraising.
It is worth noting that the pupils we have in the various basic schools are the hope of their parents and that of the country. We consistently refer to them as future leaders. We expect them to move this country to the next level when the older generation is no longer in existence.
Meanwhile, the current generation is failing to establish the necessary basic structures that will propel these future leaders to find hope in the current educational system.
The headteacher, Mr. Raymond Bebugr, appeals to NGOs, stakeholders and other benevolent persons to help the pupils with furniture. This, he thinks will go a long way to encourage the pupils to learn hard. He believes strongly that academic performance in the school will be improved greatly. He added that the availability of furniture will also reduce the increasing cold-related diseases among the pupils, particularly this rainy season.
It is soul-destroying and unfathomable why children in 21st Century still lie on their bellies to write in some of our basic schools. I think the education ministry needs to have a second look at our basic schools. There is an urgent need of revamping our basic schools. The foundation of our education needs to be properly laid. If we fail to do that, it means the future of Mother Ghana is in serious jeopardy. When will these children we always call future leaders to be equipped with basic things like furniture to enable them realise their full potential?
