The West African Examination Council (WAEC) has announced the release of its May/June 2021 diet of the Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), with A 81.7 per cent success rate.
Head of Nigeria National Office (HNO) of the examination body, Patrick Areghan, who made the announcement at the WAEC office in Yaba, Lagos, said 1,274,784 candidates, representing 81.7 per cent of the total 1,560,261 candidates that sat for the test, secured credit passes in five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.
He noted that the scorecard was 16.46 per cent better than last year’s result.
Areghan said: “1,274,784 candidates, representing 81.7 per cent, obtained credits and above in a minimum of five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.
“Of this number, 630,138, representing 49.43 per cent, were male candidates, while 644,646, representing 50.57 per cent, were female candidates.
The HNO commended both the federal and state governments for the improved performance, stating that the body could not have achieved the feat without the collaborative efforts of all relevant agencies.
He added that the results of 170,146 candidates, representing 10.9 per cent of the total, are being withheld for examination malpractice.
Areghan, however, listed some of the challenges that confronted the organisation during the conduct of the examination to include insecurity, the COVID-19 pandemic and activities of miracle centres.
“The examination spanned seven weeks, between August 16 and October 8, 2021. Throughout the period, we were faced with serious security challenges in the South East (IPOB and ESN sit-at-home order) and banditry, kidnapping and insurgency in the North and other parts of the country,” he added.
He also lamented the activities of rogue website operators and other social media platforms, who post-examination questions online immediately after the commencement of every paper.
The HNO further deplored the increasing use of cell phones in examination halls amid the existing ban besides organised cheating in some schools.
