The Principal of Tamale College of Education, Alhaji Yakubu Bukari, has appealed to the government to increase the quota system for colleges of education to enable them increase their intake. He said the country still had about 20,000 pupil teachers in the educational system but the government had insisted on the quota system of admission to colleges of education. Alhaji Bukari was speaking in Tamale on Saturday during the matriculation ceremony for 285 students admitted to the school to pursue a three-year Diploma in Basic Education. He said the school had the facilities to admit more students in order to improve the falling standards of education. Alhaji Bukari said 750 applicants were qualified to pursue the programme but the number had to be reduced to the 285 because that was its quota given by the government. He expressed appreciation to the government for the introduction of mathematics and science scholarships adding that such initiatives would enhance student’s interest in mathematics and science. Alhaji Bukari said though the strategic plan of the college was to give equal opportunities to both men and women in terms of admission, the women had not been able to meet the requirement of aggregate 24. He said the school was able to admit 100 female students out of 285 students for the first time in history and expressed the hope that the females would improve their chances by getting good grades. Source: GNA