SHS students urged to study French seriously

The ability to speak French is an advantage regardless of your program of study, even where it is not required for admission.

French students among the University of Ghana French Club (UGFC) have paid a visit to the St Thomas Aquinas Senior High School in Accra, for French language practicals.

President of the club, Gilles Ametepe advised that French should not only be taught in the classroom but instead students should also be encouraged to visit French-speaking environments to enable them to practice what they study.

He observed that students in most schools only get to study French within a limited period of time in the classroom.

He said since French had been included in the educational curriculum, heads of schools should do their best to make the language attractive to students by apportioning enough time for its study in their various schools in order to improve the study of the language in the country.

Speaking exclusively to Pulse.com.gh, he said "learning of French should not be limited to the classroom. We should deal with people outside the classroom."

He said the mission of the UGFC is to be "the most influential language students association in Ghana and make French an everyday affair."

He blamed the unsuccessful tutelage of French in Ghana on the perception of students towards the language. He explained that students treated the French language as a subject and not an alternative language for communication.

The compulsory study of French language in Ghana is currently limited to some basic public schools. The language is also an examinable subject at the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).

In spite of this, most Ghanaians are not proficient in the language, a situation Ametepe said is unacceptable.

According to him, Ghana, which is surrounded by three francophone countries must not be seen to be lagging behind in communicating in the French language.

He has however, urged Ghanaians to adopt French tutelage at the basic level to ensure the success of the initiative.