Ghana School for Life

School for Life is a nine-month education program for eight to 15-year-olds living in Ghana’s rural Northern Region, where there is very little access to primary education. School for Life teaches local language literacy, numeracy, and general academics equivalent to three primary school grades in nine months. It was established in 1994 by the Ghanaian Danish Communities Association (GDCA) with support from the Dagbon Traditional Council, The Ghana Friendship Groups in Denmark, and the Ghana Education Service (GES) in the Northern Region. Approximately 70 percent of School for Life students continue on to formal primary school at fourth grade. By 2004, it had established operations in eight districts and four languages in Ghana’s Northern Region. is case study analyzes three dimensions of effectiveness in Ghana’s School for Life: access, completion, and learning.