A former Education Minister, Honourable Yaw Osei Adutwum has proposed a transcript system that could help reduce the large number of students who fail core subjects in the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) and West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).
Honourable Adutwum, who is also the Member of Parliament for Bosomtwe, explained that the system could allow schools and universities to track students’ academic progress throughout their secondary education instead of relying entirely on their final examination results.
The proposal, he noted, is part of reforms introduced during his tenure as Education Minister, with academic records intended to capture students’ performance every semester. These records would be submitted to a portal maintained by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), creating a cumulative picture of each student’s academic development.
According to the former Education Minister, the system could also make continuous assessment more meaningful while allowing schools to identify students struggling with particular subjects early enough for intervention.
He further advocated a structured re-sit arrangement for students who repeatedly perform poorly in individual subjects. Drawing an analogy with university education, Honourable Adutwum argued that students should receive opportunities to repeat failed courses and improve their proficiency before progressing through the education system.
“If you’re doing Form 1 English and you have F in your own assessment by your own teacher, why do you move to second semester and get another F? And nobody asks you for re-sit.”
Honourable Yaw Osei Adutwum
Furthermore, the former Education Minister suggested that such a system could prevent schools from discovering academic weaknesses only after students sit their final examinations. He argued that cumulative records would provide evidence of a student’s performance over several semesters.
The system could also assist universities when assessing students whose final examination results do not fully represent their academic ability. Honourable Adutwum explained that institutions abroad often examine cumulative academic records when considering applicants.
He therefore believes a student who performs consistently well but records a poor grade in one final examination could receive further consideration. A university, for instance, could assess the student’s previous performance and provide additional academic support before admission.
Honourable Adutwum warned that Ghana risks shutting thousands of students out of degree programmes when final grades become the sole measure of academic ability. He therefore urged policymakers to strengthen the transcript model and introduce effective re-sit opportunities to give struggling students a pathway to recovery.
Rising Failure Rates Demand Urgent Rethink of Basic Education
The latest BECE and WASSCE performance figures have renewed calls for a deeper examination of learning outcomes, with Honourable Yaw Osei Adutwum urging policymakers to look beyond annual examination statistics.
The Member of Parliament for Bosomtwe and Former Education Minister pointed to Mathematics and English Language as particular areas requiring urgent intervention. He noted that the number of candidates recording grades from D7 to F9 in the two subjects remain a major barrier to progression into degree programmes.
For Mathematics, Honourable Adutwum cited about 183,000 students who could not apply for degree programmes because of their results in the subject. He explained that Mathematics serves as a requirement for university admission across many degree programmes, making poor performance especially damaging to students’ future opportunities.
English Language has also recorded a worrying increase in lower grades, according to figures referenced during the discussion. The number of candidates scoring between D7 and F9 reportedly rose from about 77,000 in 2023 to 131,000 in 2025 before reaching 142,791 this year.
The Former Education Minister consequently argued that the figures point to a systemic challenge requiring sustained intervention across the education sector. He stressed that the issue goes beyond the performance of individual students and requires policymakers to examine how teaching, assessment and academic support operate within schools.
At the same time, Honourable Adutwum welcomed the improvement recorded in Social Studies. He used the stronger performance in the subject to challenge political arguments that fluctuations in examination results could automatically be attributed to the strictness of examination supervision.
His argument centred on the need for consistency when interpreting examination outcomes. He recalled previous instances where strong results attracted allegations of examination malpractice, while weaker results later became associated with tougher invigilation.
“For politicians, we are our own worst enemies. Once upon a time, students in this country did so well and got excellent grades. Then the NDC, who were in opposition then, claimed they only did well because we allowed them to cheat.”
Honourable Yaw Osei Adutwum
Moreover, Honourable Adutwum urged politicians to approach education results with greater responsibility. In his view, using examination outcomes primarily to score political points could distract from the practical measures required to improve learning.
He also drew on his experience of working with schools in the United States to argue that Ghana could benefit from examining successful education practices elsewhere. That experience, he explained, exposed significant differences between international approaches to academic monitoring and practices previously applied in Ghana.
Importantly, the former Education Minister linked the current results to the need for stronger early intervention. Identifying weak performance during a student’s progression through school, he argued, could give teachers and education authorities an opportunity to provide support before difficulties become entrenched.
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