As the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) looms closer, Junior High School (JHS) students are expressing their worries about their inadequate preparation due to an ongoing strike by their teachers.
Beginning on March 20, three teacher unions in Ghana, namely the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the Ghana National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), and the Coalition of Concerned Teachers Ghana (CCT-GH), declared an official strike due to unsatisfactory conditions of service.
SEE ALSO: Update on meeting between the striking Teacher Unions and Fair Wages and Salaries Commission
The unions cited the government’s failure to renew their collective agreement, which expired in 2023, among other concerns.
Despite efforts to engage the government in negotiations, the unions have found no resolution, leading them to resort to stepping away from their responsibilities.
Unfortunately, this impasse between the government and the teachers has left the students in a vulnerable position.
SEE ALSO: Allowances the three major pre-tertiary teacher unions are demanding from government
In an interview with JoyNews, Samuel, a third-year student at St. Paul RC Basic School in Accra, shared his concerns about the strike’s impact on their BECE preparation.
He expressed his worry about not having teachers to guide them adequately for the upcoming examination.
“We have only three months left to write our BECE, and if there are no teachers, how are we going to write our BECE? So we need teachers to come and help us learn to pass our BECE examination,” he said.
In the absence of their teachers, Samuel mentioned that he and his fellow students have formed study groups to make the most of their time.
SEE ALSO: GES Directs 2024 BECE Candidates to Register for these Subjects
They have taken the initiative to teach themselves and seek assistance from peers who understand certain subjects.
“We teach ourselves sometimes and find someone who understands other subjects to take over and teach us for us to cope,” Samuel explained.
Another student from the same school added that their school now closes earlier than usual, and the students have been advised to study on their own.
They emphasized the urgency of the situation, stating, “We are going home because of the strike, and we were told to learn on our own. Our seniors in JHS three came to watch over us while we study, and we are coming to write exams soon. If we don’t learn too, we will fail.”
SEE ALSO: Registration Deadline for 2024 BECE for School and Private Candidates
The students are calling on the government to swiftly address the concerns of the teachers to ensure that teaching and learning can resume.
They fear that without immediate action, a mass failure in the upcoming exams may be imminent.