Abstract:
The trend world over is to include students 111 the governance of tertiary
education institutions. The purpose of this study was to explore the perspectives
of student leaders, students, and college principals on the relevance and level of
students' participation in the governance of Colleges of Education (CoES) in
the AshantilBrong Ahafo zone. Guided by the interpretivism framework, I
employed a qualitative methodology approach by using a case study design to
elicit data from ten purposively sampled participants through interviews. Eighty
other student participants with a split of 16 from each of the colleges under
study were also engaged in a focus group discussion. This study found that the
highest legal decision-making body was the 'Governing council' and students
were represented on the council. Also, it became evident that students were
disappointed when their grievances channelled through their representative to
council were not satisfactorily addressed. Based on the findings, it was
concluded that, students were part of the topmost decision-making body of their
institutions but experienced lower involvement in decision implementation.
Some support systems and services were offered however, a number of students
did not utilize the support offered. Notwithstanding the desire to offer the
needed support, cost implications made the provision of support a mirage. It is
recommended that, students' perspectives and feedback should be included in
the process of learning and governance through age-appropriate and multidimensional
means that can encompass student for a, academic competitions,
and participation in the governing process.
