Scholarlink

<p>Ghana’s Free Senior High School (Free SHS) policy, introduced in 2017 to eliminate financial barriers to secondary education, has expanded enrolment from about 800,000 in 2016 to over 1.2&#xa0;million by 2021, yet remains contested in terms of quality, equity, and sustainability. This study examines public opinion across four dimensions: perceived access for the poor, perceived increases in educational attainment, adequacy of government infrastructure, and support for policy revision. Using Afrobarometer Round 8 (2019) data from Ghana (<i>N</i> = 2,400), the analysis employs descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression to assess the influence of political, institutional, economic, and socio-demographic factors. The findings reveal high but varied support: 90% perceived improved access, 55% perceived increased educational attainment, 57% perceived government infrastructure as adequate, and 51% supported targeting reforms. These findings reflect respondents’ perceptions of policy outcomes rather than objective measures of policy effectiveness. Political affiliation is significantly associated with attitudes, with opposition supporters less likely to evaluate the policy positively and ruling party supporters more favorable. Perceptions of political disagreement reduce support for access while increasing support for policy revision. Institutional trust, government responsiveness, economic conditions, and strong regional variation further influence evaluations. Overall, public opinion toward Free SHS is shaped by partisan dynamics, institutional trust, and unequal policy experiences, underscoring the need for improved communication, equitable implementation, and broader political consensus.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Public perceptions of access, quality, and equity under Ghana’s Free Senior High School policy: a partisan cue and motivated reasoning approach

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月5日

查看全文
  • Michael K. Dzordzormenyoh,
  • Eric Amoah

摘要

Ghana’s Free Senior High School (Free SHS) policy, introduced in 2017 to eliminate financial barriers to secondary education, has expanded enrolment from about 800,000 in 2016 to over 1.2 million by 2021, yet remains contested in terms of quality, equity, and sustainability. This study examines public opinion across four dimensions: perceived access for the poor, perceived increases in educational attainment, adequacy of government infrastructure, and support for policy revision. Using Afrobarometer Round 8 (2019) data from Ghana (N = 2,400), the analysis employs descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression to assess the influence of political, institutional, economic, and socio-demographic factors. The findings reveal high but varied support: 90% perceived improved access, 55% perceived increased educational attainment, 57% perceived government infrastructure as adequate, and 51% supported targeting reforms. These findings reflect respondents’ perceptions of policy outcomes rather than objective measures of policy effectiveness. Political affiliation is significantly associated with attitudes, with opposition supporters less likely to evaluate the policy positively and ruling party supporters more favorable. Perceptions of political disagreement reduce support for access while increasing support for policy revision. Institutional trust, government responsiveness, economic conditions, and strong regional variation further influence evaluations. Overall, public opinion toward Free SHS is shaped by partisan dynamics, institutional trust, and unequal policy experiences, underscoring the need for improved communication, equitable implementation, and broader political consensus.