“Are We Setting Our Kids Up to Fail? Why the BECE Needs a Reality Check—Now”
— Educationists raise red flags, but WAEC insists everything's fine. Is it?
-I still remember watching my little cousin, Adjoa, walk out of her Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) center last year — sweaty, drained, and confused.
“Did the exam feel fair?” I asked her, trying to offer a bottle of water.
She gave me that tired teenager half-smile and said,
> “It’s like we studied one thing, and they tested something else.”
That hit me.
She wasn’t being dramatic. She wasn’t looking for pity. She was just saying what a lot of JHS students in Ghana have probably felt for the past few years: the curriculum they’re being taught doesn’t seem to line up with what shows up on that life-altering test.
Now fast-forward to today, and boom — it’s finally all over the news. Education experts are speaking up, saying exactly what kids like Adjoa have been quietly feeling: Review the BECE to reflect the new curriculum. Meanwhile, WAEC (the West African Examinations Council) is out here defending the status quo like everything’s cool.
But is it?
-Something’s Not Adding Up
Let’s break this down in regular-people language. Ghana introduced a new curriculum in 2019 — a more learner-centered, skills-based approach that focuses on critical thinking, creativity, and real-world application. Sounds good, right?
But here's the kicker: the BECE, which determines whether a student can get into Senior High School, hasn’t really changed. It’s still testing the old stuff. Like trying to download a new app on an outdated phone and wondering why nothing's working.
Imagine being taught to think differently — to explore ideas, to connect dots, to ask questions — and then being thrown into an exam that still wants you to cram and regurgitate. It’s like giving someone driving lessons in an automatic car and then asking them to pass a test in a manual without warning.
Makes zero sense.
-WAEC’s Response: “Don’t Worry, It’s Fine”
In response to all this, WAEC basically said, “Trust us, the exam is still relevant.”
Cool. But... relevant to what?
If the goal of the new curriculum is to prepare students for a modern, fast-changing world, then shouldn’t the exam also reflect those same goals? Relevance isn’t just about what’s on paper — it’s about alignment. Harmony. Making sure students are not being set up for a system that contradicts itself.
-Real Lives. Real Pressure. Real Impact.
Let’s not forget the emotional side of this. For many Ghanaian families, the BECE is everything.
A good grade means a chance at quality SHS. A shot at university. A future.
A bad grade? It’s doors closing. Dreams shrinking. Some kids never recover from the hit to their confidence.
And we’re putting all that weight on an exam that might not even be fair anymore?
In my experience, and maybe you’ve seen this too, the kids who struggle most aren’t the lazy ones. They’re often the curious ones. The ones who ask “why” and not just “what.” The ones this new curriculum was supposed to lift. And yet, the current exam format seems to crush them instead.
-So, What Now?
Maybe I’m being too emotional. Maybe I’m missing something. But here’s what I’ve noticed lately:
When the people closest to the students — teachers, educationists, even the students themselves — are all saying, “Something is wrong,” shouldn’t we listen?
Shouldn’t we pause, breathe, and ask:
Are we preparing these kids for life, or just for tests that don’t make sense anymore?
WAEC has its reasons, sure. Logistics, consistency, regional standards — all that technical stuff. But here’s the thing:
A system that doesn’t evolve with its people eventually fails them.
And when that system involves children’s futures? That’s a failure we can’t afford.
-Final Thought
What if we started looking at exams not just as filters, but as bridges?
What if we measured understanding, not just memory?
What if we truly matched our assessments with what we claim to be teaching?
I don’t have all the answers. But I do know this —
When a 14-year-old girl walks out of an exam feeling like she was set up, we should all care.
So, WAEC... maybe it’s time for a deeper review.
Not just of the BECE, but of what we really want for our kids.
What kind of future are we preparing them for?
And more importantly —
Are we listening to them at all?
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