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Affordable Private Schools in Ghana

In Ghana, basic public education is mandatory and free; however, the government faces challenges of access due to the overcrowding of public schools to meet the ever growing demand for education. The Ministry of Education has embraced Affordable Private Schools (APS) and the private education sector by providing curriculum, school resources and institutional support. The Government of Education Services approves and registers the schools based on the quality of resources they offer.

APS in Ghana can be registered as for-profit institutions, which is not typically the case in other developing countries. These schools are generally considered to have better educational standards than their government counterparts.  In a study conducted on provision of quality basic education in Ghana, private schools were found to perform better than their public schools in areas based on learning outcomes and teacher performance.

National Education System

Ghana's education system consists of 11 years of mandatory schooling beginning at age four. Implemented in September 2007, as part of the country’s Education Reform Policy, the system is structured in a 2-6-3-4 format. Children must attend two years of pre-primary education, followed by six years of primary education and three years of junior secondary education. As part of the government’s program called Free Compulsory Universal Basic Education (FCUBE), those first 11 years of education are free. Parents can opt to pay for their children to continue their education with four additional years of senior secondary education.

Case Study:  Ga District

The Ga district is a low-income, suburban and rural area in southern Ghana, surrounding the country’s capital city of Accra. Researchers have documented 799 schools in the area. An estimated 25 percent of the schools are government-sponsored, 52 percent are recognized as private and 23 percent are private but not recognized by the government. In total, an estimated 33,134 children, or about 15 percent of total enrollment, attend unrecognized APS.  

Research has suggested that both recognized and unrecognized APS in the Ga district outperform their public school counterparts in several key areas: iteacher attendance rates, student-to-teacher ratios and student performance in English and mathematics. Individual proprietors own and operate the majority of APS in the Ga district, followed by ownership by charitable organizations.

Affordable Private School Profile

School Management & Operations

  • Sole proprietors largely operate the schools; very few receive outside philanthropic support; and no school receives state funding.
  • Proprietors often rent and run schools from church buildings.
  • School facilities vary in their access to water, electricity and classroom materials.
  • School fees average between $4 and $7 per month, per student.
  • Schools are often flexible in accepting daily, monthly or full-year tuition.
  • Many schools also admit at least 5 percent of students a discounted rate.
  • In general, the average salary of a private schoolteacher is one fourth to one third that of a government schoolteacher.

Teaching & Learning Environment

  • Most schools provide instruction in English.
  • In general, the student-to-teacher ratio in private schools is about half of the size of government schools.

Parents & Students

  • Parents earning a minimum wage of $33 per month spend about 12 percent of their income on tuition at schools not recognized by the government.
  • Many schools offer discounts to children based upon financial need.

School Financing

  • Private schools in Ghana are primarily financed through student fees and do not receive government subsidies, free buildings or free land.
  • Some for-profit ventures are financed by fees, reinvested surpluses and small bank loans. In contrast, religious schools may be financed by fees, savings from profits and donations from religious organizations.

School Associations

  • The country currently has three school associations for private schools: The Ghana National Association of Private Schools (GNAPS) represents schools providing pre-school, primary and secondary education. The Conference of Heads of Private Second Cycle Schools represents senior secondary schools. The National Association of Early Childhood Schools supports pre-primary schools.

 

Resources

 

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