Bright SHS, Canadian School Enter Into Partnership

Bright Senior High School (SHS), a leading second cycle school at Akyem Kukurantumi in the Eastern Region, has entered into an academic partnership with Canada-based Blyth Academy to admit students to pursue high school diploma courses.

With this, students of Bright SHS who are qualified can be admitted to pursue High School Diploma (Grade 12) courses directly at Blyth Academy in Canada or through virtual education from Ghana.

Mr. Bright Amponsah Nyarko, the president of Bright SHS, who struck the deal in Canada, said this academic partnership agreement is one of a kind in Ghana which will afford Ghanaian students, particularly students from Bright SHS, to gain Canadian diploma certificate which can facilitate their employability in Canada and some European countries.

He said that holders of this certificate can also gain admission to pursue undergraduate and post-graduate degrees in Canada, UK and USA without any difficulty.

According to him, students of Bright SHS who enroll in Blyth Academy programmes will enjoy 50 percent discount on tuition fee.

Confirming the agreement, via Zoom, at a durbar attended by the Abuakwa North Education Directorate, the municipal chief executive, parents and other stakeholders, the Senior Partnership Manager of Blyth Academy, David Oancia, said that Blyth Academy is the largest network of private high schools in Canada with eight in-person campuses and two virtual schools.

Each campus, he said, is designed to be a community of between 75 and 150 students with an average class size of 12 students.

He mentioned that, Blyth Academy offers a comprehensive full-time programme, as well as night school, summer school, private courses and online classes in both teacher-led and self-paced formats.

Mr. Oancia noted that, in addition to course teachers, students will have access to on-demand tutorials from Ontario-based teachers

“We create unique opportunities for students to reach their fullest potential and ultimately shape the world,” he said.

He was confident that Ghanaian students who enroll through Bright SHS will reach their full academic potential through the acquisition of international certificates.

Blyth Academy was founded in 1977 by Sam Blyth and is now part of the Globeducate network. Based in Toronto, Ontario, Blyth Academy is a chain of private secondary schools with campuses throughout Ontario.

The school also has several international campuses and runs academic credit programmes in the summer that travel to over 30 countries around the world.

Blyth Academy in Ontario consists of 14 campuses throughout the province. A U.S. campus was opened in 2015 in Washington D.C. and a Qatar campus was opened in 2016.

Bright SHS Wins Award

Meanwhile, the Ghana Education Service (GES) and the Abuakwa North Municipal Assembly have honoured Bright Senior High as the “Best Private School” in the municipality.

The award comes months after the West Africa International Press Limited, in 2021, adjudged the school as “Best Private School in Ghana” at the Heroes of Distinction Conference and Awards held in Accra.

At a colorful ceremony, attended by chiefs, a judge, parents, old students in various universities, colleges and corporate institutions, citation and plaque awards were presented to Bright SHS for its academic excellence.

Excerpts of the citation, signed by Alhaji Umar Babs Bodinga and Miss Abena Gyamera, municipal chief executive and municipal education director respectively, read as follows:

“The academic performance of students who graduate from Bright Senior High School has never been in doubt. The school has consistently churned out scholars who excel in the West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).

The number of candidates who have passed out from the school since 2012 to 2021 amounts to 7,072. The Abuakwa North Municipal Assembly is very proud of you. Ghana Education Service is proud of you. Ghana is very proud of you for all the successes and honour you have chalked. You have made Ghana, Eastern region and Abuakwa North Municipality very proud.”

MCE Remarks

The Municipal Chief Executive for Abuakwa North Hon.Alhaji Umar Babs  Bodinga explained that the Municipal Education Oversight Committee (MEOC), which he chairs, thoroughly assessed academic performance of second cycle institutions in the municipality which unanimously established the consistent outstanding performance of  Bright Senior High School in the West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in the past three years under the review hence honour.

The MCE stated that, the excellent academic performance of students of Bright Senior High School leapfrogs rankings of the municipality in WASSCE and other quality educational ratings index in the country.

Alhaji Umar Bodinga emphasized for instance that, “the school’s recent performance in the 2022 WASSCE result where 77% of the candidates had from 6As to 8As has raised the image of the Abuakwa North Municipality.”

The MCE therefore made personal pledge to support three brilliant but needy BECE candidates from public basic schools in the municipality to continue their education at the Bright Senior High School to enjoy quality education and excel in their academic exploits.

Education Director

The Eastern Regional Director of Education, Margret Nsiah Asiamah, in a speech read on her behalf by Mr. Jonathan Ntow, commended the founding members of the Bright Senior High School for advancing quality education in the region.

She stated that liberalization of the education sector allowing private participation has enabled private schools to immensely contribute to quality education in the country over the years, a feat that cannot be told without mentioning the contribution of the Bright Senior High School.

“The emergence of Bright Senior High School as the Best Private Senior High School in Ghana for the 2021/2022 academic year is an indication of its consistent outstanding performance demonstrated over the years” she said.

The Regional Director of Education spurred on the management and Staff of the Bright SHS to sustain the academic gains and glean innovative ways to improve upon it, regardless of challenges that confront private education in the country.

Vice President of Bright SHS

On his part, the Vice President of the School, Mr. Dominic Acquah, in his address, commended the MCE and the Ghana Education Service for acknowledging the hard work and accomplishments of the school.

He stated that, in spite of challenges in running a private education institution in Ghana, Bright SHS continues to excel academically due to huge investment in infrastructure and quality teaching and learning.

Touching on the academic feat of the school, Mr. Acquah explained that, in 2017, the school presented 887 candidates to write the WASSCE os which 12 obtained 8As, 435 had 7As and the rest obtained 6As to 4As.

In 2018, 15 candidates out of 1,365 presented in the WASSCE obtained 8As, while 681 had 7As with the rest securing between 6As and 3As.

He said the school in 2020 presented 1,158 candidates who passed with A1 to C6.

In 2021, when few candidates of the school had standoff with WAEC invigilators over intimidation leading to sudden relocation of the examination center from the school to OPASS, out of the 837 candidates who wrote the WASSCE, 10 had 8As, 216 got 7As and the rest got 6As to 8As.

Then finally, in 2022, WASSCE results released recently, 77% of 853 candidates who wrote the WASSCE exams had 6As to 8As.

The Vice President of Bright Senior High School reiterated the call to government to include outstanding private SHSs in the Free Senior High School education policy to ensure equity and fairness, while ensuring that education thrives in the country.

He argued that private schools continue to contribute enormously to quality education and job creation in the country and therefore the need for them to be factored in policy interventions of governments.

Source: Anchorghana