Education Specialist from Africa Education Watch, Divine Kpe has lauded interventions that have been used to encourage girls in education, following an increase of female candidates during this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
He was speaking on Campus Exclusive over issues that have come up in the conduction of this year’s BECE.
He also commended the serialization of question papers to reduce incidences of papers leakage.
“Serialization has helped curb leakage of exam papers this year. The increase of girls enrollment in this year’s BECE is a reflection of the several interventions to enroll and retain our girls in school. We have achieved gender parity in our basic education system and have made quite some progress in retaining girls in the [education] system for them to be able to reach this level in their education.”
On suggestions to effectively address examinations malpractices during the BECE, Mr. Kpe called for the increase of the use of external supervisors to ensure that there is an effective and objective supervision of students.
“So the only way that [exam malpractices] can be addressed is to assign an external supervisor who is new to a center. The teachers don’t know that person, the pupils don’t know that person. Somebody from outside the exam community, the exam center community to supervise the process.”
Mr. Kpe advised BECE candidates to consider enrolling in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions across the country.
“We want to encourage [BECE candidates] to consider the option of TVET. We have seen a lot of reform in the TVET space and TVET schools are beginning to pick up by more investments are going over there. We want that the trend of more of these candidates preferring TVET school because that is the only way we can reverse some of the issues of unemployment in the country.”
In his concluding remarks, he called for the realignment of the Junior High School (JHS) curriculum to that of the Senior High School (SHS), hence implying the need for the BECE’s halt.
“JHS and SHS should be aligned so that by the time you are enrolling in JHS 1, you are going to do your core till SHS 1; so you use four years for your core subjects. Then in SHS 1, SHS 2 and SHS 3, you just concentrate on your electives. So if that alignment is done, it means that BECE will phase out because there will be no point in transitioning.”