Ghanaian education as seen from an Accra suburb

Abstract

Ghana has been a leader in African education, but economic problems in the 1970s and 1980s led to declining attendance and low teacher morale. In response to a Structural Adjustment Program, in 1986 junior secondary (JSS) was substituted for middle schooling and more emphasis was put on vocationalism in these schools. This paper examines the perception of these changes by adults in a rapidly growing suburb of the capital. What do they expect and what are they getting from academic and vocational education? What have they achieved through the education they received, and to what extent is educational advantage passed on to one's children? Disillusionment is still widespread, but expectations and/or lack of alternatives mean that considerable resources are still invested in educating their children. © 1995.

Keywords

Author Keywords

Not provided

Index Keywords

Vocational education education reform parental attitudes Ghana, Accra

Author Affiliations

Centre of West African Studies, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, West Midlands, United Kingdom

Funding & Acknowledgements

Nuffield Foundation

Acknowledgements --I am grateful to the Nuffield Foundation for a grant to support this research and to Dr K. Baku and the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana for advice and additional support.

University of Ghana

Acknowledgements --I am grateful to the Nuffield Foundation for a grant to support this research and to Dr K. Baku and the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana for advice and additional support.

African Institute for Agrarian Studies

Acknowledgements --I am grateful to the Nuffield Foundation for a grant to support this research and to Dr K. Baku and the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana for advice and additional support.

References 10 References

1 Some Factors Contributing to Elementary School Pupils Poor Performance in English Language A Case Study of Cluster Schools in Madina, (1989)

2 Sociology of Education, (1974)

3 Clignet, Rémi, The Africanization of the labor market: Educational and occupational segmentations in the Cameroun, The Africanization of the Labor Market: Educational and Occupational Segmentations in the Cameroun, pp. 1-230, (2023)

4 Ghana the Political Economy of Recovery, (1991)

5 Commonwealth Universities Yearbook, (1993)

6 Tadreg Research Report 5, (1993)

7 Ghana Living Standards Survey, (1988)

8 Middleton, John, Skills for productivity: vocational education and training in developing countries, Skills for productivity: vocational education and training in developing countries, (1993)

9 Moock, Joyce Lewinger, Pragmatism and the primary school: The case of a non-rural village, Africa, 43, 4, pp. 302-316, (1973)

10 Peil, Margaret, The apprenticeship system in accra, Africa, 40, 2, pp. 137-150, (1970)

Ghanaian education as seen from an Accra suburb

How to Cite