He said given the critical nature of the two subjects to the nation’s development agenda, the trend could not continue. Addressing a capacity-building workshop for heads of senior high schools (SHS) in Kumasi, he said the Ministry was determined to go the extra mile to ensure strong performance by students in the core subjects.

It was in line with this that the Ghana Education Service (GES) had been directed to hold the heads of school, which persistently recorded failure rate of 90 per cent or more in the core subjects, to account. The West African Examination Council (WAEC) Chief Examiner’s Report for the last five years shows that Ghanaian SHS students have been performing abysmally in mathematics and science.

The report indicates that 18 per cent of the total number of candidates presented for science in 2016 scored F9, compared with the 37 per cent in 2015, and 36 per cent in 2014. For mathematics, 38 per cent of the total number of students presented for the examination in 2016 scored F9, as against 45 per cent in 2015, and 32 per cent in 2014.

The workshop, organized by the Ministry in collaboration with the GES brought together in excess 700 headmasters from both public and private SHS. It was structured to expose them to modern teaching methodologies and modules to enhance performance of their students in this year’s examination, expected to start next month.

Additionally, it provided the opportunity to brief the school heads on policies and programmes being rolled out to improve their conditions of service and general welfare. Dr. Opoku-Prempeh said the Ministry would deepen the engagement with education stakeholders and organize regular refresher courses for teachers to build their capacity for efficient classroom performance.

Mr. Joseph Kor, Director-General of the GES, urged the heads to ensure discipline and effective supervision in the schools.