Cautious celebration marks end of BECE
Scenes of jubilation amid the observance of the COVID-19 safety protocols characterised the end of this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) at some examination centres last Friday when the candidates finished writing their final paper.
The candidates expressed their excitement by extending congratulatory messages to one another after the final bell rang to bring to a close the examination which began on Monday, September 14, 2020.
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Unlike previous years, candidates were not seen shouting, hugging and having close contact with their mates at the centres visited by the Junior Graphic.
They came out of their examination hall calmly with cheerful looks upon completion of their last paper which was Social Studies Paper Two.
At the Accra Academy centre, for example, many of the candidates said they were instructed not to scream, throw water or powder on one another due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In separate interviews, some candidates expressed joy that they had finished the exam. Majority of these candidates admitted their fear and anxiety at the start of the paper.
"I was very nervous and scared when we were called to come to school to take our examination for fear of contracting the disease.
My anxiety came down after we were given some sanitiser, nose masks and food, Bismark Effah of Hallel School Complex said.
Grace Cobbinah of Kaneshie North 1 JHS said her nerves were calmed after they were briefed on the safety measures for the prevention of COVID-19.
She said the examination questions were generally easy to answer except for the discomfort of wearing nose masks to write the BECE.
Stella Sarbah, Florinda Obeng and Christine Nunoo of the same school expressed their displeasure at the way the invigilators were strict, especially, when they were writing the Integrated Science paper.
They said they found it difficult breathing in their nose masks and so did not enjoy the BECE, yet they hoped for the best results.
Samuel Okyere of Redemption Hour School Complex said he was hopeful that the results would be good because of how easy the examination was.
He said his greatest expectation was that there would be no cancellation of papers as witnessed in previous years.
For Stephanie Frimpong, Dufie Diawuoh and Theresa Obengwaa Ofori of Cable and Wireless JHS, the delicious meals shared during the examination excited them.
A teacher at the Ramseyer Presby School, Mr Kofi Mihesso, said that irrespective of the COVID-19 crisis, this year's BECE had been successful.
"Things were very strict and orderly done this year. I urge examiners to loosen up in the marking of the scripts in order that all students pass.
My expectation is that there will be no cancellation of papers because of the stress these candidates went through due to COVID-19", he concluded.
A total of 531,705 candidates, made up of 269,419 males and 262,286 females, were expected to write the BECE.
The candidates were from 17,440 schools and they wrote the examination at 2,007 centres throughout the country.
BECE is used by the GES to select qualified candidates for Senior High slSchools (SHSs) and Technical Institutes (TIs) across the country.
The results of the examination are based on Continuous Assessment and the external examination with the Continuous Assessment forming 30% whilst the external examination would form 70% of the total assessment.
Candidates in the third year of Junior High Schools approved by the Ghana Education Service are eligible to register to take part in this examination.
