Private Senior High Schools Collapsing

Many private senior high schools (SHSs) operating in the Western Region have collapsed, investigations conducted by The Finder have revealed.

Hitherto, the twin city of Sekondi-Takoradi alone boasted of 12 SHSs but, currently, only five of them are running, with as many as seven, including Chapel Hill Senior High School, folding up.

Mr Abdulai Nsiah, head of Takoradi Senior High School, one of the private schools that is still struggling to remain in the academic business, confirmed the unfortunate development in an interview with The Finder.

He said stakeholders in the education sector are partly to blame for the collapse of the schools.

According to him, the computer placement system, which was introduced some four years ago, contributed significantly to the challenges currently facing the private schools.

"Those who couldn't gain admission into the public schools usually fell on the private schools, but the current mass absorption introduced is denying private schools their share of the graduating JHS students."

He said the system must be relaxed to allow the private schools to compete favourable with the public schools, in attracting students during admissions.

Responding to this development in an interview, Ken Kpodoh, a lead executive of Teach For Western Region (TFWR), an independent institution focussing on education development, said the collapse of the private schools, will affect the country three-fold.

“In the first place, there would be serious job cuts. As schools continue to collapse, employees hitherto engaged would lose their jobs so long as the proprietors can’t fill the schools with students.

“Secondly, there would be no attraction for any individual to invest
in the educational sector and, thirdly, the nation will be the eventual loser because the competition offered by the private schools will no longer be there”