Supervisor pleads for additional time for Mathematics and Science papers

The Examination Supervisor at the Saint Bernadette Soubirous School centre for the on-going Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE), Ms Cherie Yayra Kuwornu has pleaded for additional time for mathematics and science papers to enable the candidates perform well in the subjects.

Ms Kuwornu blamed the abysmal performances Ghana continued to record in the two subjects partly on the inability of the candidates to answer the questions within what she described as “insufficient time” allocated for the papers.

Speaking with the Ghana News Agency on Monday, the BECE Supervisor pleaded with the West African Examination Council to review the time and if possible add at least 45 minutes to the time used for each of the papers.
She explained that the move would help the candidates answer at least 70 per cent of the questions, which would propel them to perform better in the examinations.

Ms Kuwornu who was supervising the conduct of the examinations at the centre for the second time said: "Every year, some of the candidates cry in the exams hall when the bell rings for the collection of the papers because they could not even answer 30 per cent of the questions."

She also said some of the candidates usually concede defeat even before the papers were marked “which makes them frustrated and scared when taken the rest of the papers.”

Master Kumi Yeboah, one of the BECE candidates supported the move saying “some of our seniors complained that they failed in maths and science because the time was too small for the questions.”

Sandra Korantemaa Appiah, who expressed fear over the subjects, said “at least if the time is enough, I can do my best to get a pass mark”.
While said she was adequately prepared for the papers and that she would excel irrespective of how limited the time would be.

“I have studied very well and I can confidently say I would get aggregate seven or better,” she said.

Four hundred and forty eight candidates from five basic schools in Accra are writing the BECE at the centre out of the total of 468,053 candidates nationwide.