The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) is preparing to call candidates implicated in the 2023 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) to answer for their conduct.
The scripts of more than 22,000 candidates are under investigation for mass cheating.
The subject results of 312 candidates and three private candidates have been cancelled for bringing in foreign materials, such as prepared notes, textbooks and printed materials into the examination hall or colluding with other candidates.
Also, the entire results of 41 school candidates and one private candidate have been cancelled for the possession of mobile phones in the exam hall. Again, the results of a number of candidates are also being withheld.
Reacting to this exam malpractices, the Director of Public Affairs at WAEC, John Kapi, said serious infractions could lead to the banning of candidates for some years.
However, in cases where candidates commit minor offences, they could undertake the examination again next year.
“The subject officers are looking at the report of the examiners, they are also comparing the reports with the scripts so when they do that some results that may not necessarily be withheld will be released.
“But where we find that indeed there is some truth in whatever the examiners have reported, we give a hearing to the candidate. So the candidate will be invited to come to the office and then they would answer questions on whatever we discovered in their scripts,” he said.
According to him, the high rate of malpractice could be linked to inadequate contact time teachers have with students, adding that “at the end of the day, teachers feel they haven’t done enough so they have to go a step further to join them in the examination hall.”
The Executive Director of the Institute of Education Studies. Dr. Peter Anti is unhappy about the recurring rate of cheating. However, he expressed his excitement that WAEC is taking steps to crack the whip.
Also, the Executive Director of the Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare also shared the same sentiment. issue.
“I see a decline in the number of students whose entire August results were cancelled from 73 to 41 and I also see another decline in the number of students who had some of their subject’s results cancelled. When we hear the conclusion from the huge number of students whose results are been scrutinised, it will give us a definite outcome,” he said.
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