Maryland holds educational meeting

A one-day education meeting to strategize and put in place mechanism to curtail mass failure among students in Maryland County has ended in Harper City with stakeholders vowing to do everything necessary to halt the menace.

The meeting brought together school principals across the county, District Education Officers (DEOs), Parent Teachers Associations (PTAs) chairpersons, and county officials.
It was organized by Superintendent Betsy Kuoh Toe as part of her intervention to strengthen the county’s educational system.

According to her, she has observed that much has not been heard from school authorities across the county. Superintendent Toe emphasizes that it is important that her office and educational stakeholders brain storm to finding a way forward to end students’ mass failure in exams.

Statistics from the 2015/2016 exams administered by the West African Examination Council or WAEC shows that 836 senior students wrote the test, but only 273 successfully passed, while 564 failed.

Meanwhile, the Principal of Cape Palmers High School, the county’s premier high school, Mr. Babay on Boatue, attributes the situation to having one teacher teaching more than one school, students’ weakness in studying their lessons, teachers not putting in enough time, lack of textbooks and libraries, among other lapses.

Harper District Education Officer James G. Gaye, said mass failure of students in the county is also as a result of teachers not consulting their lessons plan, lack evaluation skills, poor qualification, and early request for students’ grades by WEAC.

At the close of the meeting, the stakeholders resolved that the county educational system will liaise with the Dr. Elizabeth Davis Russell College of Education at the William V.S. Tubman University to provide training for teachers across the county to enable them improve their skills in the classroom.

The Maryland school system is expected to establish a committee to conduct research on student’s failure as well as a community school enhancement program in the county.
Superintendent Toe promised to work closely with the County Education Officers (CEO) and District Education Officers as well as principals and PTA chairpersons to improve the county’s educational system.

By George K. Momo in Maryland-Editing by Jonathan Browne