Child Protection in Boarding Schools in Ghana. Prospera Dzang-Tedam
What have you learned from this chapter?
What did you know before?
Chapter 6Education in Ghana
The Ministry of Education (MoE), through the Ghana Education Service (GES), is responsible for all formal and non-formal education, including Early Childhood Care and Development (ECCD) for children over the age of five. The government’s commitment to education is enshrined in the 1992 Constitution, which guarantees that basic education shall be free, compulsory and available to all, and that secondary and higher education shall be made generally available. Basic education in Ghana comprises two years of kindergarten, six years of primary and three years of junior secondary school making a total of eleven years (UNICEF 2011). There have been many changes over the last 20 years to the education system in Ghana which has been argued by some to be both a blessing and a curse, receiving mixed reactions from its citizens.
A major concern highlighted by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is the widespread use of corporal punishment in schools. A recent study conducted with UNICEF support found that 94 percent of surveyed school children either experienced or witnessed corporal punishment in school. Such a finding gives impetus for the consideration of employing social workers in schools.
Addai-Mununkum (2014) outlines the development of religious education in Ghana and focusses on the changes which newer reforms to education brought (6 changes between 1920 and 2002) largely because stakeholders did not want to be accused of prioritising any one religion/faith over another.
Age and Education in Ghana
It is important to highlight the relevance of age within the context of childhood, education and educational opportunities in Ghana.
Unlike many European countries, Ghana historically did not provide education based on age-related characteristics. Apart from the fact that this was difficult to do logistically and practically, access to education was also seen as a decision to be made by the family and not an imposition by governments and/or educational institutions. Such a situation provides a rationale for the difference in approaches to education and access in Ghana and indeed most of sub-Saharan Africa. Dunne and Ananga (2013) found that in some rural communities in Ghana, children as old as 8 or 9 years enrolled into Class 1 (Year 1) of primary school. Indeed, the decision for a family to enrol their child in school is taken alongside a range of other considerations. Consequently, the discussion about what constitutes childhood is crucial to understanding the systems for protecting children in boarding schools. If we are to go by the UNCRC’s definition of a child as being under 18 years of age, what are the implications for people who are 18 and above and who have been placed in dormitories with much younger children (aged 11-14)? This requires urgent reconsideration and ongoing scrutiny. In addition, do younger children in boarding school environments have more protection than older children from staff and policies? If so, how and why?
It may not be immediately apparent to stakeholders for the need to ensure safety of younger children in this context. Here we propose a strategy which could further assist in safeguarding younger children in the boarding facility. This is not to say that older children aged 17/18 do not require safeguarding and child protection processes, however it does illuminate the need for a different type of process. With the current set up, it may be that ‘children’ (using the UNCRC and legal definitions) are in the same facility as ‘adults’. Government and educational institutions are asked to consider how this might pose difficulties for them in terms of protecting children, and when formulating processes and systems, how are these factors taken into account?
Glozah and Pevalin (2016) found that in some cases, the presence of ‘adults’ (18 years and above) in senior high schools was apparent. This they argued may be due to several reasons: a late start in school, poor academic performance, interruptions (stop-start), early pregnancies, inability to pay fees or class repetition.
Learning checks
What have you learned from this chapter?
What did you know before?
PART FOUR:Understanding Boarding Schools
Chapter 7 Historical & Contemporary Context to Boarding Schools in Ghana
Formal education for all children across the globe is very important. It ensures the acquisition of all the necessarily skills to be able to lead a meaningful and sustainable life in adulthood. It teaches and empowers one to read, write and communicate effectively. Without these basic skills, one is bound to find it difficult to cope in many aspects of life. The concept of education has been described as a varied and important one which transcends beyond the interactions between people, to include school and college attendance (Hodgson,1998, p3). Education can be defined broadly as
‘all activities by which a human group transmits to its descendants a body of knowledge and skills and a moral code which enable that group to subsist’.
The absence of education disadvantages individuals in that they are less likely to possess the necessary skills and knowledge to pass on within their families and in society in general.
Education performs three main functions, which according to Hodgson (1998) include: serving as a prerequisite to individual dignity, as a prerequisite to individual development and finally serves to enhance individual welfare perspective.
•Education as a prerequisite to individual dignity:
It has been argued by Hodgson (1998, p19) that ‘education imparts knowledge of essential skills and trains individuals in logical thought and reasoned analysis’ which is likely to form the foundation of individual self-respect, self-worth and dignity.
•Education as a prerequisite to individual development:
Several International Human Rights instruments recognise that ‘children should be given an education which will enable them to develop abilities, individual judgment and sense of moral and social responsibility’ (Hodgson 1998 p19).
•Enhancing an individual’s welfare perspective:
Education could be viewed as a kind of ‘commodity to which an individual is entitled to both as an end in itself but also as a means to other welfare rights’. (Hodgson 1998, p20).
Contributing to the definition of education, Dei (2004) purports that ‘Education is broadly conceived to mean the varied options, strategies and ways through which people come to know themselves and the world and how they act in this world.’ (p. 7).
As a consequence of the above, governments and parents deem it important to ensure that children have the best education available. Several measures have therefore been put in place to ensure that all children obtain the best of education in Ghana and around the world. The fourth (4th) Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) requires governments and stakeholders to ‘ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’ (CAFOD 2015, Online). All nations are therefore encouraged to ensure that all their citizens, particularly children are given the opportunity to receive the best education by ensuring the right policies, systems and processes in place. Formal classroom tuition and education therefore keeps advancing, with increasing use of relevant technology and different teaching aids. This has resulted in many more parents doing their utmost to ensure that their children acquire the best of education.
Formal education in Ghana can be day or boarding. Day students attend school in the day and return to their homes once lessons have ended (8:30am till around 3:30pm) while those in boarding provision study, play, and sleep at school in term time (usually 10-12 weeks at a time). Much has been written about the context of boarding schools more generally and across the world and there are competing views about the effectiveness of boarding schools. Holden et al. (2010) propose that boarding school environments offer unique experiences to those who access them as they