Accra, Oct. 30, GNA - The International Final Awards and Examiners Appointments Committee of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has urged Ministries of Education to provide adequate teaching time in Senior Secondary Schools (SSS).

This is because the level at which the West African Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination has been pitched is demanding and candidates need optimal contact time to be able to perform well in the examination. A statement issued in Accra by WAEC the Appointments Committee made the recommendation at their 61st meeting in Lagos, Nigeria. It said the Committee reiterated the importance and need to improve access to quality education.

The statement said members called on the governments of member countries of WAEC to support to Council in its fight against examination malpractices. WAEC members are The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

"Members noted that even though there were no reported cases of leakages in the November/December 2005 private candidate and the May/June SSS certificate examinations, there were many irregularities, with a high incidence of collusion cases detected from the scripts of candidates."

The statement said the Committee drew attention to the importance of the Chief Examiners' Reports published by WAEC at the end of each examination and which showed the strengths and weaknesses of candidates in general as well as their specific performance in each subject. It said the Committee stressed the importance of such reports since they also made recommendations on teaching and learning on how to enhance the performance of candidates.

The Committee advised students to access these reports with the assistance of their school authorities and parents because such reports would help prospective candidates to understand what was required of them during examinations.