Too much 'book long' is 'killing' our education - Mahama

Flagbearer of the Peoples National Convention (PNC), Dr Edward Nasigre Mahama says our educational system has been affected by too much book long.

According to him, Ghana’s current education system do not prepare students adequately for the challenges of the job market, revealing three key strategies by the PNC to reverse the situation.

He noted that, "Our education system is such that there is too much 'book long'. Our young people haven't been given the kind of technical training that they deserve."

Speaking at the Presidential Debate organized by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) and the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), Dr Mahama said "a lot of young persons who complete school were still undecided about what to do.

He said "counsellors would help students and guide them in the line in which they have skills", adding, "We are going to introduce a portfolio of scholarships. It will be in the form of bursaries, grants, loans for those who are highly intelligent poor."

He added that, "I will do three things. One, introduce at JSS and SSS a subject I call critical thinking, which will allow students themselves to look at where they are going. Two, I will introduce into JSS, in fact even kindergarten, counsellors."

"I will introduce into JHS even kindergarten counsellors because I see a lot of young people, they come to me from the university, they want a job and you ask them: ‘What can you do?’ and they say anything, which means they haven’t actually thought about what they were going to do with the education they were going to get so [I’ll introduce] counsellors to counsel them at the early stage at all levels to guide them," he noted.