Political considerations in the choice of medium of instruction

Abstract

Recent debates in Ghana over the English-only educational policy have brought into sharp focus ideological and political concerns, making necessary a re-examination of this all too familiar but still contested terrain. In this paper, we theorize about the factors that shaped the policy, but which remained as subtexts in the minister’s announcement. We observe that global participation and maintenance of political power could have been the motivation for the change. We suggest that this outward-orientation of the government, which policy makers placed above educational principles and pedagogical practice, is not new in policy making in Ghana or in any similarly-positioned African nation. We argue for a reconsideration of the policy for ideological reasons.