A Ghanaian Response to the study on Widening Participation in Higher Education in
Ghana and Tanzania: Developing an Equity Scorecard
By Paul Effah (Former Executive Secretary NCTE, Ghana)
Introduction
The report on Widening Participation in Higher Education (HE) in Ghana and Tanzania:
Developing an Equity Scorecard, is an evidence –based three and a half year ERSC-DFID
project aimed at contributing to making HE more socially inclusive in Sub-Saharan Africa
(SSA).
It was a one public and one private university case study in which 200 students, 119 from public
and 81 from private, with different backgrounds registered in different programmes, were
interviewed. An important dimension of this study was its pro-poor stance. Under-represented
groups including women, mature, low socio-economic status and disabled students were
interviewed. Again, 172 senior academics and staff working in the Universities and 28 policymakers were also interviewed. Views were sought on the Universities’ contributions towards the
achievement of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Finally, 100 Equity Scorecards were
compiled largely from raw data on admission, access, retention, completion, and achievement for
four programmes in relation to three aspects of inequality - gender, Socio - Economic Status
(SES), and age.
Responses to the Research Findings
The research findings have been summarized under five subheadings, namely,
1. Policy: widening participation, the MDG’s and monitoring and evaluation.
2. Growing Up
3. Higher Education
4. Structures of inequality
5. Equity Scorecards
We find it convenient to discuss our responses under these subheadings.
Policy: Widening Participation, the MDG’s, Monitoring, and Evaluation.
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In terms of the research findings, those relating to policy appear the most significant. In any
educational enterprise, it is the vision of leadership which, when effectively shared, accepted,
translated and implemented through guidelines and directives, leads to desired changes in the
system. Any society or organization that has no vision is doomed to fail. The existence of policy
may, therefore, well be regarded as the true major first step towards addressing the issues
identified.
The research findings confirm widening participation as a policy goal in Ghana and the existence
of a keen desire to reach more women, low socio-economic, mature and disabled students. A
number of concerns were, however, raised including the need for flexibility in relation to cut- off
points, emphasis, in some cases, on participation of women to the near neglect of the other
indicators, and uneven and unsystematic monitoring and evaluation in relation to a number of
social indicators. Although support in the form of counseling services and national student loans
were acknowledged, problems with assessment, fees, poor or lack of residential accommodation
still persist.
Private higher education has become a significant feature of the higher education system in
Ghana, and with it has come problems such as issues about quality, standards, staffing and
relationship with public universities. In terms of the MDG’s, the findings were that although
policy makers had a clearer understanding, the goals were not widely related to higher education.
The study makes a number of recommendations in respect of management information,
monitoring and evaluation, equity, quality assurance, capacity building and resourcing.
What is the acceptable level of participation in University Education?
In terms of broad development agenda, two major documents, Growth and Poverty Reduction
Strategy (GPRS) 1 and 2 emphasize wealth creation and the elimination of poverty. The
contribution of education and training towards the achievement of this broad goal of government
is crucial. Education and training develop the human capital required to increase a country’s
output of goods and services and contribute to economic development.
There are different types and levels of tertiary education and the University is one of them. Each
of these broad categories has specific contributions to make to the realization of the human
capital goal of government’s development agenda. A discussion of widening participation at the
university should look at the rate at which one can say that the level of participation is
acceptable. It is important in this regard to look back at the model of university education that
Ghana inherited from the British tradition. In Britain, university education was not supposed to
be for everybody; it was for those of the elite class who could afford it. One major function of
higher education was to train leaders, therefore, university education was restricted to a carefully
selected elite who were to become future leaders (Effah, Mensa-Bonsu, 2001). It was not until
1961 following what has been described as the Robbins Report that expansion of higher
education was legitimized and extended to all those who qualified for it. This trend has also
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characterized university education in Ghana and explains, to a large extent, the very limited
participation at this level.
Starting from almost very insignificant numbers, participation in HE has seen a significant
growth. From a total of about 10,000 in the early 1980’s student enrollment in public universities
reached about 110,000 in the 2008/2009 academic year. Ghana’s Gross Enrolment Ratio of about
3% in the late 1980’s has reached 10%, (NCTE,2009). Although this is still lower than the 3050% achieved by many developed countries, it is quite phenomenal compared to what obtains in
other African countries.
The need to control numbers
Although widening participation is desirable and generally acceptable to all stake holders, it is
impossible to provide university education to every youth. Government’s approach has been to
widen participation through a policy of differentiation at the tertiary level. All the two major
reforms embarked upon during the last three decades have emphasized the need to encourage
viable alternatives to university education, In this regard, the White Paper on the university
Rationalization Committee Report in 1991 suggested the establishment of Regional Colleges of
Applied Arts and Sciences (RCAAST) which were to train students in the arts and sciences up to
the diploma level. It also proposed the establishment of two more universities, the University of
Education, Winneba and the University for Development studies with its headquarters in Tamale.
These universities have since been established. Polytechnics have been upgraded in line with the
proposals in the White Paper. The upgrading exercise was further to reposition Technical
Vocation Education and Training (TVET). In the White Paper to the report on the Review of
Education Reforms (Anamuah-Mensah Report) in 2004 emphasis was again placed on TVET
and Polytechnic education which was to be strengthened and resourced to train graduates up to
the degree level. A number of polytechnics have since obtained accreditation to run B. Tech
degree programmes. Teacher training colleges have also been upgraded to tertiary status as”
Colleges of Education” to train teachers up to the diploma level. Nursing training Colleges are in
the process of being upgraded.
These upgrading exercises are aimed at broadening participation at the tertiary level, among
other things, to reduce pressure on university education. While polytechnics are to offer handson, practical training, the Colleges of Education and the Nursing Training Colleges are to train
professional teachers and nurses respectively to augment professionals in their respective fields.
This is an important policy initiative to try and create viable alternatives in higher education
thereby, widening participation.
What the policy of ‘differentiation’ seeks to do is to reduce pressure of admissions on
universities and to broaden participation at the other levels such as Colleges of Education and
Polytechnics. This is necessary because as demand for university education continues to outstrip
expansion in physical and academic infrastructure, quality is bound to be compromised.
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Private Higher Education
Private participation in HE is one of the emerging trends in Africa. Someone has asked the
question whether private participation in HE constitutes a threat or promise to public tertiary
institutions. The answer is that it is neither. Indeed, participation of the private sector in HE has
become a reality. Private HE has come to stay to complement Government effort. It cannot be
wished away.
In Ghana, private provision of HE has expanded from about one institution in 1979 to some 55
accredited institutions in 2009. This phenomenal expansion has come with it a lot of challenges.
The first obvious one is how to assure quality. Until the establishment of the National
Accreditation Board (NAB) in 1993, there was no organized regulatory framework for private
provision of HE. With the establishment of NAB some order has been put into the process of
establishing private tertiary education institutions. No one can get up to establish a private
tertiary institution without seeking accreditation. It would be closed down if the fact of its
existence without accreditation comes to the notice of NAB, and many have suffered this fate.
Any proprietor who plans to establish a private tertiary institution would have to go through a
process of accreditation in two phases, institutional, and programme accreditation. But, given the
number of individuals and institutions involved, and the fact that public institutions and
programmes have also to be accredited, the situation is capable of overwhelming NAB, unless it
quickly builds its capacity. Secondly, there is the tendency for some individuals both in public
and private institutions to be involved in management and teaching in several other private
tertiary institutions. This situation is difficult to regulate. As several individuals teach in several
institutions, not much can be expected of them, thereby adversely affecting the quality of
delivery and provision in those institutions. Again, owing largely to the huge initial capital
outlay, and the lack of science teachers and laboratories, many of the private tertiary institutions
shy away from science based programmes and concentrate mainly on the arts, business, ICT and
religious based programmes.
This notwithstanding, private participation in HE has introduced some competition in the
provision of HE, particularly in the arts and business subjects, which has the potential of
enhancing quality. What is required now is a continuous mechanism of monitoring the activities
of private provision of HE to ensure that bad nuts are weeded out. Private participation has also
introduced flexibility in the provision of HE, convenient to workers and other adult learners.
Private tertiary institutions have come up with other creative ways of addressing the needs of
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adult and mature students, including flexible admission procedures and continuous and distance
learning.
Contribution of HE to the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
In September, 2000 UN member states adopted the UN millennium declaration to reduce
extreme poverty in all its forms by half by 2015. Agreement was reached on eight goals
supported by 21 quantifiable targets and sixty (60) indicators through which progress could be
measured.
The findings of the study with regard to the MDGs were that they were not widely related to HE.
Although policy makers were aware of the MDGs this was not the case with regard to academic
staff. This situation was corroborated by Prof Goolam Mohamedbhai, in a paper “Contribution
of Higher Education to the UN Millennium Development Goals” in which he argued that the vast
majority of academics who were his audience were not aware of the MDGs and therefore, could
not even start thinking about how their institutions can contribute to them (AAU Press Release,
Sept,2010). This statement does not imply that universities do not or have not made any
contribution to the achievement of MDGs. Broadly, the government’s development agenda as
captured in the Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategies (GPRS I&II) is the creation of wealth
and elimination of poverty. The universities role is to generate knowledge as a basis for
development and to develop human capital required to serve as a catalyst for national
development. The education and training at the university and tertiary education level opens up
opportunities, broadens one’s scope and equips graduates with skills that prepare them for the
world of work. Therefore, universities are agents of development helping to take people out of
poverty, directly or indirectly, thereby contributing to the achievement of MDGs.What is
required is to create awareness in universities, whipping up their interest and enthusiasm in
ensuring that the MDGs are met.
Growing up
The study identifies under this sub-heading, a number of issues including lack of teachers,
especially STEM, factors emanating from rural environments and types of families as well as
children from low socio- economic groups and makes recommendations for addressing them.
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Among the recommendations made is the development of a code of professional ethics for
teachers in primary and secondary schools, professional development for teachers and the
introduction of a more robust quality assurance of primary and secondary education, inspection
and audit arrangements.
We would like to discuss the lack of teachers, especially STEM, the rural environment and the
need for a strong inspectorate. Teachers form a bedrock, and are central to any education reform.
Their role is even more crucial in the teaching of science and mathematics. Ghana has adopted a
policy of attaining a 60:40 science: arts ratio at the tertiary level. This policy is far from being
achieved. In practice, the average science to arts enrolment ratio at the tertiary level is about
30:70 in favour of arts. The reasons are not far to seek. First there are not enough science
students emerging from the basic and secondary schools. It costs more to study sciences and
mathematics than the arts subjects in terms of money, time and effort. Next, there are not enough
teachers to teach science and mathematics even in the urban schools, let alone those in the rural
areas. Science schools are not enough and when they exist, particularly those in the rural areas,
they do not have the required laboratories to facilitate the teaching of science and mathematics.
There are thirty-eight (38) teacher training colleges which have since 2004 been upgraded to
tertiary status and designated as colleges of education. Out of this number only fifteen (15) are
science based. Their output is low owing to some of the issues raised above. A number of
interventions have been initiated to address the issue of shortage of teachers in primary and
secondary schools. One is the upgrading of teacher training colleges to tertiary status. This has
come with other initiatives such as the introduction of ICT, and the review of curricula to
emphasize content. Introduction of science and mathematics clinics, particularly for girls and the
establishment of science resource centres are further pointers to Government’s commitment to
step up the study of science and mathematics at the primary and secondary levels. In more
recent months, the Ministries of Science and Environment and Education are collaborating
efforts to introduce scholarships and bursaries to promote the study of science and mathematics.
There is a need for an effective system of scholarships and bursaries for students studying
science and mathematics in secondary and tertiary institutions to promote the study of science
and mathematics. Loans for students pursuing these categories of courses should exceed those of
their colleagues in the arts. Students who continue to the tertiary level and decide to teach in
either second cycle or tertiary institutions for a period of ten years should have their loans written
off. All teachers in colleges of education offering science and mathematics should be offered
scholarships and bursaries. This effort should be accompanied by appropriate efforts to expand
science based schools, particularly laboratories. Government policy of having one model science
secondary school in every district should be pursued to its conclusions. This way, students in all
districts can hope to have a good science based school closer to them.
One of the reasons often assigned by educationists for better performance of private secondary
schools in Ghana is effective supervision of teachers. To improve monitoring and supervision an
Inspectorate Directorate has been established within the Ministry of Education headed by a Chief
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Inspector of Schools. It is hoped that when completely operational, the Directorate would help to
step up monitoring and supervision of schools and thereby help improve quality. District
Assemblies should be encouraged to sponsor teachers, particularly those in science and
mathematics and be bonded to teach in the districts for a period of time.
Higher Education
The section of the study on higher education reports on a number of issues including negative
experiences of students and proposes the introduction of quality assurance procedures. The
negative experiences reported cover wide-ranging issues such as poor quality, inadequate
physical and academic infrastructure, lack of professionalism on the part of lecturers, large
classes and lack of transparency in admission procedures.
The negative experiences reported by students are largely the results of massification. With
increased student enrolment, decreasing public funding of higher education and near stagnation
in the provision of physical and academic infrastructure, facilities have been overstretched to
their breaking points. Until recently, poor conditions of service have made it difficult to attract
and retain young faculty. This situation has resulted in large classes with its attendant difficulties
including poor supervision, introduction of multiple choice questions, rote learning and less
attention to issues of quality. The situation is improving. The National Accreditation Board
(NAB) has been established to grant accreditation to both private and public institutions. This
has helped somewhat, although the number of institutions involved is making it overwhelmingly
difficult to regulate the sub-sector. Conditions of ssevice for staff in higher education institutions
are improving steadily making it possible to attract and retain some young faculty.
There are still a number of issues that require urgent attention. The conditions of service need to
be improved further. There are many young lecturers, particularly in the new institutions where,
because of the lack of senior faculty, are holding administrative positions such as headship and
deanships. These people are unable to inspire confidence and provide the required academic
leadership. There is need for systematic training and retraining, particularly as the people are
appointed to these positions on rotational basis.
All higher education institutions should be required to set up quality assurance units to do self
assessment on regular basis. The culture of self assessment must be built into all institutional
systems. This way many of the negative experiences reported by students can be addressed.
Students’ assessments of their lecturers should be taken seriously. Sanctions must be applied
where lecturers misconduct themselves to serve as deterrent to others. Policies and regulations on
examinations must be implemented and where they do not exist, some drawn up.
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Structures of Inequality
Several structural inequalities exist in Ghana in varying degrees. Those reported on by the study
include gender, poverty, age and disability. Access and quality seem to be inversely related
which makes it difficult to address. For, widening participation to address inequalities in the
system can compromise quality unless the stock of physical and academic infrastructure can
correspondingly be expanded. This calls for more resources, particularly financial resources. But
the evidence available suggests that public funding of higher education is dwindling which
makes addressing the twin evils even more difficult.
With regard to gender, the study identifies a number of interventions being initiated to facilitate
women’s participation in HE. Affirmative action seems to be widespread in admission policies.
One barrier to overcome in this regard is the perceived discrimination and favoritism held by
some male students and the view held by some women in high social standing that the practice
makes women feel inferior to their male counterparts. It is instructive to point out in this regard
that women who qualify for the affirmative action must have met the minimum entry
requirements before consideration is given to them. Evidence from the universities in Ghana
attest to the fact that females who have benefitted from affirmative action have performed well,
some graduating with first and upper second classes
There are many other factors which go against the female student, particularly those who are
day students. Many girls unlike their male counterparts are saddled with many household chores
and have very little time to study at home. Because of the daily routine which they go through
they often get to school already tired which also affects their studies. Even at boarding schools,
girls have many social problems they think about, some spending so much time to keep
themselves in shape.
Sexual harassment was reported in the study. The harassment comes from both male tutors and
students which can distract the female students from their studies. Some subtle distinction needs
to be made here to bring home the complexity of the issue. There is what is termed ‘sexual
corruption ‘where both the student and the tutor agree to the transation.The student offers herself
and the tutor concedes. Since both parties agree to the transaction it becomes very difficult to
address. In the case of harassment, one party is not in agreement which makes it relatively easier
to bring it to attention. In all cases it is necessary to develop a policy on sexual harassment which
makes provision for appropriate sanctions.
In terms of participation in science and mathematics, initiatives such as science and mathematics
clinics have made some impact, however, the numbers involved are considerably small, given
the total numbers in this category.
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General Observations
Policy Initiatives
There are a number of policy initiatives in the HE scene on widening participation at the tertiary
level dating back to the education reforms of 1987.Increasing access was high on the agenda of
the University Rationalisation Committee [URC] set up in 1987.Arising out of the White Paper
issued on the URC Report, a number of policy initiatives on widening participation have been
implemented. Polytechnics were upgraded to tertiary status, two new universities, the University
for Development Studies, Tamale and the University of Education, Winneba have been
established. There was to be established the Regional Colleges of Applied Arts and Sciences
(RECAAST) Instead of the RECAAST, the education reforms of 2004 provided for the
upgrading of each of the categories of the institutions. This process began with upgrading of the
Polytechnics into Colleges of Education .The nursing and agricultural colleges are to follow this
example.
Impact of the Project
As has been noted, several interventions have contributed to the widening of participation in HE
in Ghana. The various policies of Government arising out of the two major education reforms
during the last three or so decades can be cited in this regard.
The study and the sharing of its findings at various fora have contributed to the throwing of more
light on the issue of access in HE and deepened understanding of the complexities involved
Policy makers are the ones who can be said to have benefitted greatly in this regard. It would,
however, be difficult to isolate the extent of the impact attributable to the project
Identification of Possible Champions
Every education reforms require a combination of several efforts to succeed. The issues
identified in the study will require the collective effort of all stakeholders to address. First, is
Government, and here Government must show the will and commitment to provide quality
education at all levels. This is because education is the key to national development. Education
confers not only social benefits. There are private benefits too Parents and students must be
interested in the education they get and be prepared to commit resources to it. But it should be
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recognized that not everybody has the means to provide the education they require. This is why
Government support in the form of loans and scholarships is necessary and crucial to ensure that
no one is denied education on account of lack of funds. Industry benefits from education and
should be prepared to commit resources to it. There are several NGOs in Ghana committed to
education. The institutions, schools, colleges, staff and faculty who are themselves committed to
education. The Ministry of Education organizes an annual stakeholders meeting to review the
performance of the Ministry. This annual performance review is commendable and needs to be
sustained. There is a need to follow-up actions and decisions arrived at the annual performance
reviews.
Future Strategic Actions/ Recommendations
The study makes a number of useful recommendations. These should be translated into strategic
actions for implementation. One relates to the need for a systematic collection and analysis of
data as a basis for policy and decision making. This should be at all levels, institutional, subsector and ministerial. A unit in the Ministry should be adequately resourced and mandated to
collate and analyse the data to come out with a synthesized report on half yearly basis which
addresses the information needs of all stakeholders.
On quality assurance it is important that all tertiary institutions both private and public are
required to seek accreditation before mounting them. The National Accreditation Board has this
responsibility and needs to be adequately resourced to enable it to discharge its responsibility
effectively. Beyond external review it is necessary that institutions take internal assessment
seriously. All tertiary institutions must in this regard be required to establish internal quality
assurance units. The National Council for Tertiary Education and NAB the establishment of the
QA units in the institutions.
The absence of STEM teachers was emphasized in the study. This is one area which requires
urgent attention. The Ministries of Education and Science and Technology should vigorously
pursue the issue of scholarships and loans for science students. This policy should start with the
Colleges of Education to enable them to train enough science, technical and vocational teachers
for basic and second cycle institutions
One area of concern at all levels of education is inadequate supervision. Monitoring and
supervision are key to addressing most of the inadequacies in education at all levels. The
establishment of a directorate for inspection at the Ministry of Education is a step in the right
direction. The inspectorate unit in the Ghana Education Service should be strengthened to ensure
proper supervision at the pre- tertiary level. At the tertiary level it is necessary build leadership
and management capacity and sharpen their skills to enable them to address current challenges.
A number of steps have been taken in this direction which needs to be scaled up. Every
university or polytechnic either has or is in the process of preparing a strategic plan. A number of
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training programmes have also been drawn up to equip senior managers of tertiary institutions
with management and leadership skills. These efforts need to continue.
Governments programme of institutional diversification and differentiation should be vigorously
pursued. The colleges of education, polytechnics, nurses and agricultural colleges should be
nurtured and resourced to train people up to both diploma and degree levels. Distance. education
should continue to be pursued, and with time governments desire to establish an open university
should be concretized.
A number of initiatives have been taken with regard to gender mainstreaming. Each institution
should be required to develop its own gender policy taking a cue from the government policy on
gender parity.
There is a need for a policy on quotas for students in deprived areas and remedial programmes
for science students. Some institutions have their own regulations on these. The time has come to
institutionalize these practices and determine rational policies on these.
Above all, government’s development agenda of creation of wealth and elimination of poverty
should remain the overarching objective and the principal driving force in the economy.
Education has the responsibility in ensuring that the human capital required to realize this dream
is produced.
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