Review the Rules, Not the Machine: Adutwum's Call to Fix Ghana's School Placement System

Ghana's school placement system has become a flashpoint for debate, with parents and stakeholders questioning whether the Computerised School Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) is fit for purpose. But according to former Education Minister Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, the real problem may not be the technology itself—it is the rules and policies that tell the computer what to do.

Speaking on Wednesday, September 9, 2026, Dr. Adutwum, who represents Bosomtwe in Parliament, made a straightforward but significant argument: computers do not make decisions on their own. They execute instructions written by people. If the CSSPS is producing placements that frustrate parents and educators, the fault lies not with the machinery but with the policies and algorithms programmed into it.

"It's not a computer. It's the algorithm. It's what you tell the computer to do," he said during an interview, cutting to the heart of the technical debate that has consumed education circles in recent weeks.

The Policy Problem Behind the Placement Crisis

The push to completely scrap the CSSPS has gained momentum as complaints mount about how students are matched with secondary schools. Some stakeholders have argued for a return to older systems or a wholesale technological overhaul. Dr. Adutwum's intervention suggests a different approach: keep the system, but interrogate and reform the underlying policies that drive it.

His reasoning is logical. Software developers do not write code in a vacuum—they translate policy requirements into technical instructions. If those requirements are flawed, poorly designed, or fail to account for important factors, the system's output will reflect those shortcomings. Replacing the computer would not solve the problem if the new system operates under the same faulty policies.

Dr. Adutwum stressed that government and education authorities should commission a thorough review of the placement policies themselves. This would involve examining which criteria the system prioritises—how much weight is given to student preferences versus school capacity, how merit is measured, how catchment areas are defined, and whether the rules adequately serve disadvantaged communities or reinforce existing inequalities.

Why It Matters for Ghana's Education System

The CSSPS has been central to Ghana's education administration for years, handling the placement of hundreds of thousands of junior high school graduates into secondary institutions annually. When it malfunctions—or appears to—it affects entire families and communities. Students end up in schools far from home, or in schools that do not match their aspirations, creating a cascade of frustration that extends beyond the classroom.

Dr. Adutwum's argument matters because it reframes the solution. Rather than chasing a technological silver bullet, Ghanaian education planners would be better served examining the human decisions embedded in the system: the policies that shape it. This requires convening policymakers, educators, parents, and technology experts to ask hard questions about whether current rules are equitable, efficient, and aligned with Ghana's education goals.

A policy review could also save resources. Replacing an entire computerised system is expensive and time-consuming. Auditing and revising the policies that govern it is more targeted and potentially more effective. Moreover, if new policies are well-designed and tested, they can be integrated into the current system or carried forward to any future platform.

The Road Ahead

Dr. Adutwum's intervention adds an important voice to a heated debate. While his predecessor as Education Minister faces ongoing scrutiny over the system's performance, his practical suggestion offers a pathway forward that avoids the all-or-nothing choice between keeping or ditching the CSSPS entirely.

For Ghana's education authorities, the message is clear: before making sweeping technological decisions, examine the policies that animate the system. The computer is only as good as the instructions it receives.