64.7% Say Double-Track Has Reduced SHS Education Quality, IEA Poll Finds
A new nationwide poll has found that 64.7 per cent of Ghanaians surveyed believe the double-track system has reduced the quality of Senior High School (SHS) education.
The finding comes eight years after Ghana introduced the system as a temporary response to rising enrolment following the implementation of the Free Senior High School programme.
The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), which conducted the poll in August 2026, surveyed 1,062 respondents across all 16 regions of Ghana.
The results have renewed attention on the long-running debate over the impact of double-track education, particularly the pressure on school infrastructure, teachers and the wider learning environment.
Majority of respondents link double-track to declining quality
According to the IEA findings, 64.7 per cent of respondents said the double-track system had negatively affected the quality of SHS education.
By comparison, 20.2 per cent believed the system had improved education quality, while 14.7 per cent said it had made no difference.
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A further 0.2 per cent did not express an opinion. (IEA Ghana)
The responses indicate that the main concerns among those who viewed the system negatively were linked to pressure on existing school infrastructure and the student-teacher ratio.
The IEA said the findings reflected concerns about the effect of maintaining the arrangement after it was introduced to manage the rapid increase in SHS enrolment.
Why Ghana introduced the double-track system
The double-track system was introduced in 2018 after the Free SHS policy resulted in a sharp increase in the number of students entering secondary education.
Existing infrastructure could not accommodate the increased enrolment at the time.
Under the arrangement, students are divided into groups that attend school during different periods. This allows more students to use the same classrooms and other facilities while reducing the immediate need for additional physical infrastructure.
The system therefore helped expand access to secondary education despite infrastructure constraints.
However, the latest IEA poll suggests that many respondents believe the arrangement has come with consequences for education quality.
More Ghanaians support building additional schools
The IEA survey also examined whether Ghanaians support government borrowing to construct additional SHS infrastructure as a long-term approach to phasing out the double-track system.
The results showed that 54.3 per cent of respondents supported the proposal.
Meanwhile, 38.4 per cent opposed borrowing for the construction of additional school infrastructure, while 6.2 per cent expressed no opinion.
The figures suggest that infrastructure expansion has significant public support, although respondents remain divided over whether additional borrowing should be used to finance it.
The issue is particularly important because expanding school infrastructure would require substantial investment, while Ghana continues to face concerns over its public finances.
Stronger support among those concerned about quality
The poll produced a more pronounced result among respondents who believed that double-track had reduced the quality of SHS education.
Among that group, 60.8 per cent supported government borrowing to construct additional school infrastructure.
Another 38.4 per cent opposed the borrowing proposal, while 0.8 per cent had no opinion.
This suggests that many respondents who associate double-track with declining education quality also view additional school infrastructure as part of a possible solution.
However, the IEA cautioned that support for infrastructure expansion should not be interpreted as unrestricted support for increasing public debt.
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Debt concerns remain
The IEA said the survey presents two competing concerns.
One is the need to expand SHS infrastructure to address capacity constraints and improve the education environment.
The other is the need to ensure that financing such expansion does not place additional pressure on Ghana’s public finances.
The policy think tank said many respondents who support expanding infrastructure would prefer the government to explore alternative financing arrangements rather than increase the country’s debt burden.
The findings therefore place infrastructure and financing at the centre of the discussion about the future of double-track education.
What the poll means for Ghana’s SHS system
The poll does not itself establish that double-track is the direct cause of declining education quality. Rather, it measures public perceptions of the system among the 1,062 people surveyed.
Those perceptions nevertheless highlight concerns that remain important to students, parents, teachers and education policymakers.
The results also show that the debate is no longer limited to whether double-track should continue. It increasingly involves how Ghana can provide enough classrooms and other facilities to accommodate SHS students without creating additional pressure on public finances.
For schools operating under capacity constraints, the availability of adequate infrastructure and teachers remains central to the quality of teaching and learning.
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What happens next
The IEA findings are likely to add to discussions about the future of the double-track system and the government’s approach to expanding SHS infrastructure.
For parents and students, the immediate implication is that double-track remains an important issue in Ghana’s secondary education debate. Any move to phase out the arrangement would require sufficient infrastructure and a financing strategy capable of supporting increased capacity.
The IEA poll ultimately highlights a clear public concern about SHS education quality while also showing that Ghanaians remain divided over how the infrastructure needed to address the problem should be financed.
