Education Minister Haruna Iddrisu has called for a nationwide conversation on whether Ghana should reconsider the ban on corporal punishment in schools, citing growing concerns over rising indiscipline among students.
Speaking at the National Conference on Stemming the Growing Indiscipline in Schools in Sunyani, the minister said increasing cases of misconduct in educational institutions have raised questions about whether existing disciplinary measures remain effective.
Haruna Iddrisu clarified that he was not announcing a government policy but rather inviting broad public engagement on the issue. He noted that President John Dramani Mahama, the Ghana Education Service (GES), and the Ministry of Education are all seeking public views on whether corporal punishment should be reintroduced.
He urged the media, parents, teachers, students, and other stakeholders to actively contribute to the national discussion on the future of discipline in schools.
The proposal received support from several participants at the conference. Some students and teachers who spoke to JoyNews backed the possible return of corporal punishment, arguing that it could help restore discipline if implemented under clear guidelines.
While supporting the idea, some students stressed that any policy allowing corporal punishment must include strict safeguards to prevent abuse and excessive punishment by teachers or school authorities.
Teachers also expressed concern that current disciplinary measures have failed to adequately address persistent misconduct and increasingly serious behavioral issues in schools.
Ghana officially phased out corporal punishment in schools in 2017, replacing it with a positive discipline approach. As part of the transition, the Ghana Education Service, with support from UNICEF and other development partners, introduced the Positive Discipline Toolkit to help teachers manage student behavior without resorting to physical punishment.
However, GES Director-General Prof. Ernest Kofi Davis acknowledged at the conference that implementation of the positive discipline policy has not achieved the desired results, despite the availability of the necessary guidelines.
The renewed debate comes as the Ministry of Education intensifies efforts to tackle indiscipline in schools. Haruna Iddrisu also emphasized that criminal behavior has no place on school campuses, insisting that educational institutions must remain safe environments where teaching and learning can thrive.
