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Tag: WASSCE

  • WAEC releases 2018 WASSCE results, withholds 1,021

    The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) on Tuesday announced the release of its January/February series of the 2018 West African Senior School Certificate Examination.

    The council’s Head of National Office, Mr. Olu Adenipekun who announced the release in Lagos, said results of 1,021 candidates were, however, withheld.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the approval to introduce and conduct the additional diet in the country and other national offices of the five-member countries was given at the council’s 65th annual general meeting in March 2017.

    The introduction of the series for Private candidates, brings to the three, the number of examinations conducted by the council each year.

    According to Adenipekun, the results were withheld in connection with various reported cases of examination malpractice by the affected candidates.

    He said the cases were being investigated and that reports of the investigations would be presented to the appropriate committee of the council in due course, for consideration.

    “The committee’s decisions will be communicated to the affected candidates,’’ Adenipekun said.

    According to him, 11,721 candidates registered for the examination, while 11,307 actually sat for the test.

    Giving a breakdown of statistics of candidates’ performance at the examination, the HNO said that 8,113 candidates obtained credits and above in two subjects.

    He noted that 6,375 others obtained credits and above in three subjects, while 4,762 candidates obtained credits and above in four subjects.

    Adenipekun also said that 3,263 candidates obtained credits and above in five subjects, while 2,010 others obtained credits and above in six subjects.

    “A total 1,937 candidates, representing 17.13 per cent, obtained the minimum of credits in five subjects and above, including English Language and Mathematics.

    “The percentage of candidates in this category in the WASSCE in 2017 was 26.01 per cent.

    “From the statistics of performance, it is safe to say that candidates performance is not satisfactory, compared to what obtained in the same diet for private candidates in 2016 and 2017.

    “We, therefore, wish to plead with candidates to take this examination seriously,’’ he said.

  • WAEC set to conduct maiden January/February WASSCE for private candidates

    WAEC set to conduct maiden January/February WASSCE for private candidates

    The West African Examinations Council (WAEC) says it is set for the conduct of its newly introduced January/February West African Senior School certificate Examination (WASSCE) for private candidates.

    The council’s Head, National Office (HNO), Olu Adenipekun, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday in Lagos.

    With the development, the first series of the examination for private candidates would be holding in January/February, while the second series would hold in the second half of the year

    According to Mr. Adenipekun, the January/February examination, which is the first of its kind in Nigeria, will take place in major cities across the country this year from January 29 to February 12.

    “We are fully ready to go. This examination is the first of its kind in the country for private candidates only, and is to be administered for now only in major cities and towns.

    “The result of this examination might likely be released within 30 days, and once we are able to do that, then we will be free to go into the main examination, which will now be the conduct of the May/June WASSCE for school candidates.

    “After this, we then also have the opportunity to prepare also for the conduct of the second series of the WASSCE for private candidates in August, popularly known as November/December WASSCE.

    “So, in a nutshell, we are fully prepared to win over the confidence of the general public, especially the Nigerian children, to the fact that they have an examination body that is ready and prepared to meet their academic needs,’’ he said.

    Mr. Adenipekun said the new arrangement was to ensure that those who are unable to pass were given the opportunity to get better prepared and try again.

    He said that efforts had also been stepped up in the area of computer and application of hardware for the council’s operation, to impact the activities of the organisation positively.

    According to the HNO, council seeks to continually improve on its operation in the new year in order to be able to conduct leakage-free as well as credible examinations and release result s promptly.

    The council’s Head, Test Development Division, (TDD), Frances Iweha-Onukwu, told NAN that some 12,000 candidates had registered and were expected to sit for the examination across the various centres in the country.

    “For the fact that such number of candidates registered for this first series of the examination is a positive sign for the council.

    “We only need more sensitisation and awareness for subsequent outings.

    “I am sure that with time, more candidates will key in, and I know with time, it is going to get better,’’ she said.’’

     

  • Stakeholders applaud Oyo Govt on Improved WASSCE results

    Stakeholders applaud Oyo Govt on Improved WASSCE results

    Stakeholders in education Sector in Oyo State have celebrated the state’s performance in the recently released WASSCE results, urging the state government to continue to enforce its education reformation policies.

    The Stakeholders, who were represented by the State Chairman, National Parents, Teachers Association of Nigeria (NAPTAN), Comrade Moshood Abayomi, the State General Secretary, All Nigeria Conference of Principals of Secondary Schools (ANCOPSS), Pastor Babajide Emmanuel and First Vice-President (ANCOPSS), Comrade Fadare Mojirade, led their members to the State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology recently to show their appreciation to the government for its efforts towards the development of education in the state and deliberate on issues relating to schools’ resumption.

    NAPTAN Chairman, Comrade Abayomi thanked the State government on behalf of the parents for enforcing good education policies, saying that the implementation of the policies looked difficult at the beginning but the end has justified the efforts of the government.

    He said, “We, parents, in Oyo State owe our amiable governor and the State government extreme gratitude for seeing all the policies to fruition. It was initially difficult but we all knew it was like weaning a baby who has been attached to his mother’s breast-milk. Today we are better for it.

    “We are using this opportunity to call on other parents to please inform their wards that it is no more business as usual. Security agents will be on the lookout for students that roam the street when schools resume. We also urge the government to continue with these policies as they are bringing about the needed result in improving our schools and students.

    “The SGB is the driver of new faces of schools in major communities in Oyo State today. Old students and community leaders are building classrooms, fences and providing furniture because we have all realized that the government cannot do it alone,” Comrade Abayomi said.

    Comrade Abayomi warned parents to inform their wards of government’s zero tolerance for street roaming by students as they would soon resume for a new academic season, appealing to the state government not to rest on its oars and consequently pledged that NAPTAN would continue to give the government the necessary support to sustain and improve on the good results being recorded in recent times.

    The ANCOPSS Vice-Principal, Comrade Fadare said that it was worthy of celebration as the State broke the jinx of eighteen years of poor performance in WASSCE with an outstanding 54.18% performance in 2017 in a year in which the national average was 59%

    She noted that the much-touted ‘Change’ mantra would be nothing if achievements like improved academic excellence were not witnessed, adding that the shift from the poor performance of students of past years to the recent one was remarkable.

    According to her, “Today is a day of joy to us as teachers and Principals in the State on this remarkable improvement in the performance of our students. The various efforts of the present administration to bring sanity into education and academic performance in the State have been yielding fruitful results with this 54.18 percentage performance.

    “Moral ethos is now back in our schools and values lost over time are being entrenched through government’s introduction of policies like the School Governing Board (SGB), which gives some responsibilities to the community and stakeholders to develop the school. Look at the OyoMesi intervention project, the ban on automatic promotion, launch of Education Trust Fund and the government’s pledge of about N5bn for renovation of schools throughout the State. They are good policies that are already bearing results. We are all happy for this change in the academic performance of our students,” Comrade Fadare added.

    The Commissioner for Education, Prof. Adeniyi Olowofela in his response, thanked the stakeholders for their belief in the present administration’s policies which he said were formulated with their input.

    Olowofela said it was clear with the result of the intervention programmes that politics should not be mixed with important social services like education, promising the stakeholders that the administration would not relent in putting more efforts into improving the current standard.

  • Police arrest 4 suspects over fraudulent education websites

    Police arrest 4 suspects over fraudulent education websites

    The Nigeria Police Force says it has arrested four suspects for operating illegal rogue websites to defraud unsuspecting West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) candidates across the country.

    The suspects are: Chijioke Modestus, Samuel Onwurah, 20, Patrick Nwodo, 30 and Okon Joseph.

    The Force Spokesman, CSP Jimoh Moshood, told newsmen in Abuja on Friday that the suspects were arrested by personnel of the Inspector-General of Police monitoring unit at different locations.

    Moshood said that Modestus, a 300 level computer science student of Michael Okpara University, Umudike, was arrested at Umuahia, Abia and confessed to have collected N70, 000 from his victims.

    He said Onwurah, who was arrested in Kutunku area of Gwagwalada, Abuja collected N90, 000 from his victims while Nwodo, who was arrested at Abakpa Nike in Enugu, also collected N40,000 from his victims.

    The spokesman explained further that Joseph, a 200 level Public Health student of the University of Calabar, who was arrested in Calabar collected N120, 000 from his victims.

    Moshood, said that officials of WAEC had observed that some persons were soliciting for candidates sitting for the examination, to pay money into their bank accounts for `solved answers’ to questions.

    He said that the suspects would be charged to court on completion of investigation, while efforts would be intensified to arrest other operators of the websites.

    The spokesman gave assurance to members of the public of the renewed commitment of the force to stamp out criminality in the country.

    Mr Yusuf Ari, Zonal Coordinator for WAEC in Abuja, said that the council has been facing such challenges for some time.

    He said that the examination body had banned candidates and invigilators from carrying cell phones into examination hall, to check malpractices.

    Ari restated the commitment of the council to conduct examination at approved and certified centres only.

    TheNewsGuru reports that the WASSCE held on May 12 in the country and other four West African countries.