The President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Angel Carbonu, has called for engagement on the appropriateness of WAEC’s monopoly in the country’s examinations space.

According to Mr Carbonu, multiple examinations boards provides more credibility as it offers people choices on actions to take.

Mr Carbonu further noted that, the introduction of new examination bodies will bring some competition in the educational ecosystem. He further explained that, it will also help curb the spate of examination leakages documented in the country.

His comments follow the report on the assessment of the 2020 WASSCE by education think tank, Africa Education Watch. The report accuses some staff of WAEC for assisting in the leakage of questions during the exam.

“We should start asking ourselves whether maintaining one single examination board called WAEC is advisable; or whether the time isn’t right for us to start asking ourselves if we should invite other examination boards. Because that is what happens in a lot of countries. When you go to England, they do not have one single examination board.

“All the examination boards are in competition with one another. The various universities know the standards of the various examinations boards. The parents know which examination boards are credible and which are not. So, people have choices and because they have competition amongst themselves, they ensure that the integrity of their exams are well protected because that is what is going to keep them in business.”

Monopoly of WAEC

In April this year, the Executive Director of the Africa Education Watch, Kofi Asare, called for the regulation of WAEC. According to him, the regulator will expedite the standardisation of the Council’s operations.

He further revealed that it would ensure that it delivered as expected to produce “true and learned students.”

Additionally, Mr Asare maintained that WAEC was not monitored and evaluated by any set of standards and regulators.

“We need regulators for WAEC to set standards and ensure that sanctions are applied to any individual, group, or entity that fails to apply the law. These credibility gaps continue to exist because WAEC, apart from enjoying a comfortable monopoly for over 50 years, is not under any form of regulation that compels the adoption and observance of standards for the assessment and neither is it accountable as a semi-autonomous body operating under the Ministry of Education”.

Monopoly leads to inefficiency

Minister for Education, Dr Yaw Adutwum, previously the deputy minister for education, in August last year, maintained that a monopoly doesn’t have to be created with WAEC. According to him, there is no need to create monopolies “if it will lead to inefficiency”.

Dr Adutwum further revealed that, he expected the Council to make conscientious effort to stymie the leaks which have persisted in the past two decades.

“Why are they not using 21st-century means of stopping leaks and cheating forever? I think they are going to have to sit up.

“If you are a student, and you are waiting for the questions to be leaked, if even they are leaked, you do not know the version you are going to get”.