Twelve BECE candidates not allowed to write exams for absenteeism
Twelve registered Junior High School (JHS) final year students in the Yendi Municipality of the Northern Region were not allowed to write this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
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According to the Yendi Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Alhaji Issah Zakaria, the decision not to allow the affected students to write the examinations was taken by the assembly, with the municipal education directorate, as a result of truancy on the part of the candidates, who were not attending classes regularly after they had registered for the examinations.
Speaking to newsmen at Yendi, after the first quarter town hall meeting, he said the decision was also to serve as a deterrent to others who indulged in such acts and behaviours, pointing out that, the decision by the municipal authorities formed part of measures to arrest the abysmal performance of students in the BECE.
Some of the affected students, made up of a female and 11 males, were said to have attended classes for only 10 days while others were present for less than 20 days.
The quarterly town hall meetings by the assembly are aimed at accounting to the people in the municipality on the activities of the assembly.
Education a priority
According to Alhaji Zakaria, education remained the assembly’s major priority adding that, the assembly had put in place measures to address the decline in academic performance in the municipality and would therefore not allow anyone to tarnish the image of the municipality.
He said the assembly observed that most pupils refused to attend classes after they had been registered for the BECE until the period of the examination, and that affected their performance tremendously.
He said the assembly would not condone any recalcitrant behaviour and, therefore, had instituted measures to monitor the activities of the students in their various schools from time to time to ensure all students attended classes regularly.
Alhaji Zakaria explained that the affected children were advised to go back to school to prepare for the examinations next academic year, for the sake of their future and also serve as deterrent to others, but not to punish them.
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He expressed worry about the situation where instead of marking the class register, some teachers left it in the care of the students, who in turn, marked their colleagues, even though they may be absent.
He noted that teenage pregnancy was also on the increase in the municipality with the continued recording of teenaged pregnant candidates every year, and advised parents to show interest in the welfare of their children and desist from the use of poverty as an excuse to allow their children to lead care-free lives that later jeopardised their future.
A survey conducted in the municipality revealed that the poor performance of students at the BECE, was as a result of the lukewarm attitude of the pupils who prefered staying late in the night doing nothing rather than doing private studies.
The Yendi MCE advised teachers not to allow any student who did not participate in mock exams or attend school regularly, to write the final paper to tarnish the image of the school.
Emmanuel Bonney writes from Accra that, when contacted, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Ghana Education Service (GES), in Accra, Mr Jonathan Bettey, said the assemby had no right to prevent the registered candidates from writing the examination, and indicated that the service would take up the issue.