Students’ Perception of the Importance of Christian Religious Studies in Character Development in Senior High Schools

Abstract

The study investigated students’ perception of the importance of Christian Religious Studies in character development in senior high schools. It further sought to determine the role of the subject in character development from the student's perspective and how the study of the subject contributes to character development in senior high schools. The qualitative study design was to collect data from 100 students from Amaniampong Senior High School at Mampong in the Ashanti region of Ghana. It was found, among other things, that 81% of the respondents, being the majority, said that Christian Religious Studies contribute to the character development of students in senior high schools. In comparison, 19% of them, as the minority, said that they do not think Christian Religious Studies contribute to students' character development in senior high schools. Based on the study's findings, the following recommendations were made: First and foremost, the Ministry of Education (MoE) should provide schools with sufficient teaching materials to enable teachers to teach Christian Religious Studies to achieve the subject's objectives. Moreover, teachers must use different teaching methods in the classroom to make all students benefit from the subject. Besides, the government should pay teachers better salaries to motivate them to deliver.