WAEC seizes results of 376 candidates, plans computer-based test

The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has withheld results of 376 candidates for its January/February First Series WASSCE for private candidates, over examination malpractice.

The council’s Head of National Office (HNO), Mr Olu Adenipekun, made the disclosure at a news conference on Tuesday in Lagos.

Adenipekun also disclosed that WAEC would soon start conducting its examinations on Computer-Based Test (CBT) platform.

Our correspondent reports that WASSCE is West African Senior School Certificate Examination.

According to Adenipekun, the cases of malpractice are being investigated and reports of the investigation would be presented to the appropriate committee of the council for consideration.

He said that the committee’s decisions would be communicated to the affected candidates.

Adenipekun said that a total of 12,202 candidates registered for the examination out of which 11, 892 sat for it.

He said that, of the total number that sat for the test, 6,180 were male and 5,712 female, representing 52 per cent and 48 per cent, respectively.

The head said that, of the 11,892 candidates who sat for the examination, 11, 686 had their results fully processed and released.

According to him, 206 have few of their subjects still being processed due to errors traceable to the candidates in the course of registration or writing the examination.

“I want to say such errors are being corrected by the council to enable the affected candidates to get their results fully processed and released subsequently,’’ he said.

The HNO added that a total of 8,782 candidates obtained credits and above in two subjects while 7,332 others obtained credits and above in three subjects.

Adenipekun said that 5,850 others obtained credit and above in four subjects while 4,314 others obtained credit and above in five subjects.

The official also said that 3,102 other candidates representing 26.08 per cent obtained credit and above in a minimum of five subjects including English Language and General Mathematics.

He noted that the percentage of candidates in this category when compared to the WASSCE for private candidates for the 2018 diet of First Series was 17.5 per cent.

According to him, this year’s result in the category recorded an improvement in terms of performance.

Adenipekun said that the council had stepped up efforts to check malpractice in its various examination centres by ensuring that members of the council were spread across to monitor activities during the examinations.

“We have stepped up efforts to ensure that we deploy at least one council staff to each of our centres to be our eyes there aside the ad-hoc staff.

“Perhaps, that is also part of the reasons I can say that the number of cases of malpractice in our private candidates’ examination is reducing.

“We are not going to rest in our fight against examination malpractice until it is finally conquered,’’ he said.

The WAEC boss said that plans were underway to introduce its examinations on CBT platform.

He said that CBT test would start with its objective questions, noting that the council was already concluding establishment of its CBT Centre at Ogba in Ikeja.

“In about two week, we should be concluding installing all the necessary software and backups in our new CBT centre with about 600-seat capacity.

“It is going to be a world-class centre to be used for our CBT activities whether marking of scripts or related purposes.

“In fact, we want other stakeholders – corporate individuals and organisations – to join hands with us in establishing CBT centres nationwide, in schools and other places, but I want to say WAEC is at the forefront for this project.

“Our examination is purely achievement test, that is assessing students in a period of six years that they have been in school,” he said.

The HNO said that introduction of CBT, starting with the objective questions, would be a gradual thing since it would not be easy to ask students who might not have been exposed to computers while in school to just come and take examination with computers.

“However, where any schools feel they have been training their students on how to apply the computers very well and therefore want us to come and administer such a test using the computers, why not? We will do it.

“That is why I say, for us to be able to introduce the CBT test for our examinations, it will take combined efforts of all of us – schools, WAEC and other keys stakeholders,’’ he explained.

Adenipekun advised candidates who sat for the examination to check details of their performances on the council’s result website: www.waecdirect.org