GNAT backs return to single-track system in October
By Praisebell Rosemond Larbi
The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has welcomed the Ministry of Education’s announcement that Ghana will revert from the double-track system to a single-track academic calendar, effective 31st October 2025, marking the start of the 2025/2026 academic year.
The Ministry explained that the policy reversal aims to restore stability and efficiency to the education system, allowing for the smooth organisation of extracurricular activities such as sports, cultural events, and clubs.
It also seeks to provide parents and guardians with a more predictable and uniform school timetable.
The double-track system, which divided students into different cohorts attending school at alternate times, was introduced in 2018 to address infrastructure deficits in Senior High Schools (SHSs) following the rollout of the Free SHS policy.
It was later expanded as a temporary measure in response to disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
GNAT’s Reaction
Speaking to the media, GNAT General Secretary, Thomas Tanko Musah, expressed strong support for the decision, describing it as a timely move that would ease the burden on both students and teachers.
“It was COVID that occasioned what we are doing now. We can’t keep doing emergency things when that state is no more in existence. It is in the right direction that we are working our way back to where we were before COVID came,” he said.
Mr Musah stressed that returning to a single-track system would help reduce fatigue and stress among students and teachers, while also ensuring better management of school facilities.
However, he urged the Ministry and other stakeholders to implement the necessary measures to sustain the academic calendar going forward.
“I want to encourage all stakeholders, particularly the Minister, that we must do things that are sustainable, policies that can stand the test of time, and we will all be fine,” he added.
Looking Ahead
Educationists have long argued that, while the double-track system helped manage overcrowding in schools, it also placed immense pressure on infrastructure, reduced contact hours, and disrupted extracurricular learning.
