Accra: Mr Eric Edem Agbana, Member of Parliament (MP) for Ketu North, has called for an urgent investigation into the municipality's poor performance in the recent Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), warning that the situation requires immediate collective action to prevent further decline in learning outcomes.
According to Ghana News Agency, Mr Agbana, speaking at his fifth Quarterly Accountability Series at Dekpor on Sunday, highlighted that Ketu North was among the poor-performing municipalities in the examination. This development, he noted, was a matter of significant concern and required a comprehensive assessment of the factors undermining teaching and learning in the municipality.
Mr Agbana shared insights from school visits, revealing that some of the best-performing grades began from Aggregate 30 and above. This revelation raised serious concerns about the quality of teaching, students' preparedness, and the overall learning environment in the area.
Despite Mr Agbana's support for the Municipal Education Directorate, teachers, and schools, including sponsoring professional development workshops for teachers, the interventions have yet to yield the desired improvements. He noted that while Ketu North faces a teacher shortage, the municipality still has a relatively strong complement of qualified teachers compared to other districts in the country and the Volta Region that are recording better BECE results.
Mr Agbana called on chiefs, queen mothers, the Municipal Education Directorate, the Assembly, teachers, and parents to urgently investigate the root causes of the poor performance and develop practical measures to reverse the trend. He also urged parents to take greater responsibility for their children's education by monitoring their academic progress and working closely with teachers and school authorities.
Addressing the teacher shortage, Mr Agbana mentioned that the municipality is expected to benefit from a Youth Employment Agency initiative to recruit teaching assistants, which would provide additional support to teachers and help bridge the staffing gap. He emphasized that improving academic performance in Ketu North should be treated as a collective responsibility, stressing that immediate and sustained action is needed to ensure that children in the municipality receive quality education and achieve better results.