How Underdogs become Top Dogs ~ Stan Dugah writes

For so long the best schools in Ghana were also the oldest or the ones affiliated to churches, established by missionaries or the most endowed. Money, to some extent, can buy you brains or be an enabler of excellence. Mfantispim, Adisadel, Achimota, Presec, Augusco, Pope Jones, Wesley Girls, Opoku Ware, Prempeh College and St. Peters are such schools. But things have been changing for sometime now. 

There are secondary schools in Ghana that are not affiliated to any church, were not having any endowment to begin with but have risen to the top and are producing graduates who are able to match their colleagues from prestigious schools with better resources in terms of academic achievement at WASSCE, at the tertiary level and what they achieve with their lives later. 

How do they do it?

It takes belief, unshakeable self belief, and hardwork to triumph with limited resources and disadvantaged beginnings, and these schools and their teachers are creative and intentional about it. 

When I was speaking to pupils of Vodza R.C. Basic School before the just ended BECE, I told them to give it their best shot because they will be competing against kids from better schools in better parts of the country who are also eyeing the schools that they want to attend at the secondary school level. 

It's not a level playing field, and we should work towards ensuring equal opportunities and equal chances for all students, no matter which part of the country they find themselves in or wether they come from poor backgrounds or not. 

Not to discount their efforts, but I won't be that impressed with students from Achimota, St. Peters and Presec getting 4 A1s or more as much as I would be with a student who schooled at Anlo Afiadenyigba SHS or attended school in a part of the country that teachers don't like being posted to scoring same. 

There are lots of students who attended school hungry, owing fees, distracted but still managed to kick ass. Imagine what they could have done or become attending a prestigious school and then continuing to the tertiary level right after?

Let's create a better education system, let's provide resources for all schools and students, let's ensure a level playing field for all. 

It's change in the right direction, and underdogs can become top dogs.

Let's do this. 

By Stan Dugah

StantheStoryTeller

22/11/2021