Refer to the SHS academic schedule for 2023–2024; first-year students are expected to report on December 4

On December 4, 2023, first-year senior high school (SHS) students who are awaiting their results from the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) will report to class. SHS

The date, which applies to both single-track and double-track students, was published by the Ghana Education Service (GES) in the academic calendar for the nation’s pre-tertiary institutions for 2023–2024.

In the meantime, students in Forms Two and Three who are enrolled in the single-track system are required to report to class on November 1.

First-year students
As per the double-track transitional schedule, Form One children will attend classes from December 4, 2023, to March 5, 2024.

Nonetheless, they will be back in class from May 13, 2024, until July 9, 2024.

They are scheduled to resume their break on July 10, 2024, then reopen on September 3 until the academic year closes on November 15, 2024. SHS

Conversely, single track students will begin classes on December 4 and remain there until March 15, 2024, with a holiday period from March 16 to May 2, 2024.

Commencing on May 3, 2024, the second semester will run until August 28, 2024, when the academic year comes to an end. SHS

Students in Forms 2 and 3
Under the single track system, students in Forms Two and Three will report to class today through March 5, 2024. From March 6 to May 2, 2024, they will start the first semester break.

On May 3, 2024, they will resume classes, running through August 28, 2024, when the academic year will come to an end.

Under the double track system, Form Two students will have to wait from March 8, 2024, to start the first semester, until May 9, 2024, to finish it.

Starting on July 12, 2024, and lasting until November 15, 2024, is when the second semester of the school year will conclude.

The fact that the Easter vacation falls between March 29 and April 16, 2024, and the Christmas break falls between December 21, 2023, and January 2, 2024, is noteworthy. SHS

Students in Form Three
The first semester for Form Three students enrolled in the double track will likewise run from January 3, 2024, to March 28, 2024.

They will start their second semester on April 17 and end on August 23, 2024.

On the other hand, Form Three pupils enrolled in the single track system have two semesters: the first runs from now, November 1, 2023, to March 5, 2024, and the second runs from May 3, 2024, to August 28, 2024, when they graduate.

Basic schools
Per the calendar, basic schools will be in session for 12 weeks from October 3 to December 22, 2023.

They will go on vacation from December 23, 2023 to January 8, 2024.

They will then resume for the second term for 14 weeks from January 9, 2024 to April 11, 2024.

They will go on vacation from April 12 to 29, 2024.

The students will return to school on April 30 for the third term which will last for 13 weeks, during which period Form Three students will write the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in July 2024.

However, Form One and Form Two students will be in school from April 30 to July 25, 2024.

In all, the students are to have a total of 39 weeks of contact.

Feasible calendar
Asked how feasible the calendar is, the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), Dr Eric Nkansah, gave an assurance that everything would go on smoothly as scheduled. SHS

He said the GES had put in place a strategy that would fast-track the Computerised Schools Selection and Placement System (CSSPS), hence the December 4 reporting date for the first-year students was plausible.

Reaction
However, the Executive Director of Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare, said the calendar would require a lot of explanation for parents to understand.

For instance, he said, it was not proper for those that would be going to Form Two under the transitional calendar to report to school on March 8, 2024, when Form One students under the single track calendar would have started their academic year today, November 1, 2023.

“So they (Form Two students under the transition calendar) would start their academic year in March next year, while those in the single track are starting theirs next month,” he said.

In the case of Form One students reporting to school in December, he said that was possible since the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) results would be ready in two weeks time, after which they would be released and the students placed in their schools of choice. SHS

With regard to Form Three students, he said, there were different dates for the completion of the academic year under both calendars.

He wondered why the academic year ended on different dates for the single and double tracks.

Explaining further, he said the Form One students would be spending more days in school than at home, which was good.

For his part, the Chairman of the Madina, Abokobi, Adenta District of the Ghana National Association of Teachers, Christian Yaw Adinkra, wondered how feasible it was for Form One students to report to school on December 4 and end the term around March 2024.

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