ST. JOSEPH’S BOYS SCHOOL STUDY UNDER TREES IN CAPE COAST

Text and pictures by: Francesco Rocco

Male students studying under canopy

Pupils and teachers of St Joseph Boys School at Amanful in Cape Coast are currrently studying under trees at St. Micheal Girls School in Cape Coast due to inadequate classroom facilities.

This situation has affected enrolment in the school almost 50% of the pupils do not attend lectures because they had to share the facility with their females counterpart.

It is exactly one month since  St Joseph Junior High School at Amanful in Cape Coast got destroyed by fire this led to the relocation of the pupils to St. Micheal Girls School.

St Joseph Boysb School has an enrolment of 85 pupils  and only thirty-five attend classes

The new center has been moved to the near St. Michael’s girls schoool.

The uneasiness for the ST. Joseph’s Boys School are quite a lot because in the new center there is no space for them, therefore they  had to wait that the girls end up the lessons to be able to start theirs.

A solution of fortune was adopted, as for example to prepare a class in the school compound some are fortunate to be tent while others have to use the tree as their cover. The teachers are not left out since their staff common room is under a tree. The challenges are many, difficulty to focus during the lessons because of the girls often make recreation, and with it rains classes are suspended.

The girls also don't allow the boys to use their baths, so they are forced to urinate and defecate in the bushes that are very close to the classes, making air obviously unpleasant and the healtly conditions at risk.

ST. Joseph's school destroyed by fire

The building housing ST. Joseph’s Boys that was destroyed by fire has not been demolished as promised by the officials of Cape Coast Metropolitan Assembly and it poses danger to residents and pupils residing in the area.