Final year Senior High School, SHS students in Ghana will this year write the West African Senior School Certificate Examination, WASSCE without their colleagues from other West African countries.
Due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic the West African Examination Council, WAEC has suspended all its examinations.
The Information Minister Kojo Oppong Nkrumah speaking on government’s decision to ease the restriction for the final year students in the country to go back to school said the Ghanaian students will write the examinations alone.
“WAEC has already signalled that the general exam has been suspended, countries that can put in place interim measures will be given support to take off their examinations. We believe that we are able to get to a point that we can do this for our final year students.”
“Our expectation at this stage is that ours will be on a stand-alone matter while for the other countries they proceed to attend to them as and when they are ready to do something similar. If you had only Final year students going into these institutions you have a lot of space that you can socially distance and that is how come even class prescription numbers have been arrived at…”
President Akufo-Addo has yesterday reopened schools in the country for the final year students at all levels.
Akufo-Addo in its 10th Covid-19 address said this is to allow them to prepare and write their exit examinations.
The President explained that the decision was taken after engagement with the teacher unions in the country.
University final year students will go back to school on June 15, SHS will do same on June 22 and JHS will resume classes on June 29.
“From Monday 15th June the decision has been taken after engagement with teacher unions whose cooperation I salute to reopen schools and Universities to allow for final year students, Junior High, Senior High and University students to resumes classes ahead of the conduct of their respective exit examinations. Indeed final year University students are to report on their university campuses on 15th June, final year SHS 3 students together with SHS 2 gold track students on 22nd June and final year Junior High School on 29th.” June
Akufo-Addo speaking on adherence measure of the Covid-19 safety protocols said the class size for JHS student should be 30, SHS 25 and Universities will run half the class size.
He added that the Education Ministry will distribute reusable face masks to students and teachers to help stem the spread of the virus.
He has also called on school authorities to fumigate and disinfect their classrooms before classes begin.
