Students’ level of academic engagement and achievement at any level of education is partly knit to the kind of relationships that exist between them and their teachers. The study examined the impact of teacher-student relationship on academic achievement of students in Senior High Schools in Winneba, Ghana. Eighty students were conveniently sampled from two strata whiles data was qualitatively collected using semi-structured interview guide and analyzed thematically. The study uses the four clusters of teacher-student relationship as a framework to discuss the types of relationships that exist in Ghanaian Senior High Schools. The study revealed that connectedness, dependent, peaceful and conflicting teacher-student relationships prevail in Senior High Schools. However, administrative restrictions, and certain attitudes of teachers and students impede the development of effective teacher-student relationship. Whereas positive relationships create environments that augment academic achievement, threatening relationships stifle academic achievement. Teachers should deliberately express concerns both about students’ academic and non-academic life, as this makes the latter feel accepted and motivated to improve academic work.

Senior high school education in Ghana has experienced tremendous growth following the introduction of Free Senior High School (FSHS) policy. The corresponding increase student enrolment presents challenges to teaching and learning and academic performance, in general. In this study, 181 teachers were selected from six senior high schools (SHSs) within Ejisu Municipality using cluster sampling technique in order to examine how changes in student enrolment, following the implementation of the FSHS policy, has affected teaching and learning. The study adopted trend analysis with data analysed using SPSS. The findings showed an impressive steady increase in student enrolment. It was also found that academic performance of students generally dipped in the introductory years of the FSHS policy whiles some improvements were observed from 2019 forward. However, the study revealed that schools experienced challenges of classroom and dining hall congestions; inadequate teaching and learning materials; inadequate hostel infrastructure; and high student-teacher ratio among others. The study, among others, recommends a multi-stakeholder collaboration to salvage the infrastructure deficits and its associated challenges that characterise SHSs in Ghana.

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