Sidelining the Church is fuelling indiscipline in schools – Most Rev. Gyamfi

President of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Most Rev. Matthew Gyamfi, has attributed the rising indiscipline in Ghanaian schools to the sidelining of churches from the management and formation of students.

According to him, while formal education remains the responsibility of the government, churches have an important role to play in shaping the character and values of students.

He said the government’s decision to distance churches from certain aspects of education has contributed to the decline in discipline, particularly because churches have traditionally helped schools instil moral values in students.

“Education, formal education, is the government’s responsibility. He has the right. He sets the tone. He decides how education should go. It’s not the churches. We only make suggestions to the state as to what could be done to make education complete,” he said this in an interview with Accra-based JoyNews.

He argued that academic excellence alone was not enough to properly prepare students for life, stressing the need for deliberate efforts to teach values and discipline alongside formal education.

“They want to instil discipline and approach indiscipline to promote human formation, to change all of these things, they do not come by accident. They come by teaching the children. You must have people to teach them these values in addition to academic excellence,” he noted.

Most Rev. Gyamfi questioned why the government would invite churches to help address indiscipline after sidelining them from roles they previously played in the formation of students.

He stressed that character formation requires consistent teaching and guidance, warning that leaving students without adequate moral and values-based education could worsen indiscipline in schools.