By Abubakarr Harding
The Minister of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE), Dr Moinina David Sengeh, on the 26th September, 2022 publicly intimated, via the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC), that the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WAEC) 2022 results are now out.
Before announcing the results, the Minister stated that he knows that candidates and parents have been patiently waiting for the day and apologized for the delay in release of results but told all to be rest assured that WAEC and the Ministry are releasing the results well in time for those transitioning and seeking admission into higher and technical institutions for the next academic year.
“This was the largest cohort of examination candidates ever,” the Minister pointed out adding how they wanted to make sure they did due diligence.
The Minister informed the nation that they just returned from the Transforming Education Summit in New York where Sierra Leone’s President, His Excellency Dr Julius Maada Bio was co-chair along with the UN Secretary-General.
He continued that such a global honour comes from the Government’s sustained investments in education and their renewed commitment to keep transforming learning for all.
The Minister revealed that “Transforming Learning for all” is in fact the title of the Ministry’s Education Sector Plan (2022-2026) which will shape all the Government’s interventions over the next five years.
Dr Moinina David Sengeh informed that in New York, President Bio committed to sustaining an investment of a minimum of 20% in the education sector in addition to the following:
– cut in half the number of out-of-school children of primary school age by 2030, compared to today
– launch an Alliance for Foundational Learning through which they further commit to cutting the rate of learning poverty in half or more by 2030
– commit to preparing students for the future by making climate education a central component at all levels
– commit to setting measurable targets for skills training and technical education.
He said they are about to release to candidates the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) 2022 conducted by the West African Examination Center.
According to Moinina David Sengeh, there is a lot to be proud of, as a nation, maintaining that before he announces some metrics of interest he wants to remind all of the following impact of the Free Quality School Education that will place the numbers into context:
– When parents save tuition fees, examination fees, and costs of core text books, they re-invest it largely in the education of their children.
– When Government ensures that 3.1 million core textbooks in English and Maths are in the hands of our secondary school children, they learn.
– When Government ensures that it recruits and trains more teachers, increasing their salaries 3 times in 5 years, they perform better.
– When Government makes learning materials like past papers and other curriculum content freely available to students using digital technology, we see improved learning.
– When Government invests in building hundreds of classrooms, providing thousands of furniture and making schools safer, ensuring our children can go to school and return home safer through school transportation, those children feel safer and learn better.
– When Government reviews all its education curriculum, making it fit of purpose, our children become more competitive globally.
– When Government engages students, teachers, parents, and the community in the provision of a more inclusive and equitable education, quality improves for all.
The Minister stated that the aforementioned are but a few commitments the Government has sustained over the last four years adding that while they are not surprised at the outcomes, and the jump is not spontaneous (that is we have been seeing upward trends over the past years) the Government is hopeful that it has more to do as they seek to transform the country through education.
In giving Key highlights the Minister stated that: The number of candidates sitting WASSCE has increased by 479% (2018-22) reaching a record of 186,695 students for whom results have been released to the MBSSE. The rest, he said, have been withheld adding that schools should follow WAEC protocols with any Grievance Redress.
The Minister disclosed that for the second year in a row, there are more female students than male students sitting WASSCE, that the pass rate for individual papers has climbed from 64% in 2021 to 77% in 2022; the number of students obtaining the benchmark 5 credits in a single sitting has increased by 1863% between 2018 and 2022.
He stated that the top student sat and passed all 8 of his subjects with an average grade of 1.63, i.e. something better than a B2, the top student was a girl and a joint second was also a girl.
The Minister also intimated that the top school saw 100% of its candidates obtain the benchmark 5 credits as well as all meeting the minimum requirements for direct entry to university degree programmes, with an average grade of 2.33, i.e. approximately a B2.
He claimed that the number of candidates achieving direct university degree programme entry requirements by obtaining 5 credits including a credit in English Language and/or Mathematics in a single sitting has increased by an amazing 1,781% over the period 2018:2022.
“In 2022 more than 108,000 students obtained the requirements, which is more than the previous 5 years combined,” he said mentioning how more females than males obtained those requirements
He also announced that the pass rates for English Language and Mathematics are 63% and 90% respectively and that Males slightly outperformed females in English Language nationally but in mathematics the opposite was true with females outperforming males
The Basic Education Minister told the nation that there remains large variation in performance across subjects revealing that of the twenty subjects with most candidates sitting, Science (Core) had the highest pass rate (95%) and Commerce the lowest (11%)
The further pointed out that there remains a large variation in performance across districts, including in terms of average grade/unit, percentage obtaining 3 and above credits and for obtaining the requirements for entry into a full first degree programme.
With regards the top 10 schools based on average grades, the Minister gave the following: Kamboi (Lebanese) Senior Secondary School, Kenema , Science World S.S.S., 16W Blackhall Road on Ashorbie Corner in Freetown, Providence International Senior High School in Freetown , the Hammond Int. Academy Secondary School in Freetown , Mallory Jansen Memorial High School, Pentecostal SSS Aberdeen Ferry Road, Furlange School of Excellence(EDUCAID) Senior Sec. School, Dele-Peddle International High School, Freetown, Extra Mile Oba Funkia Community SSS Goderich.
With regards the top 4 candidates based on average grades he gave the following: Nasma Skaikay of Kenema Kamboi (Lebanese) Senior Secondary School, Kenema with (6As), Hassan Khadijah Kallon of the
Kenema Community Initiative Academy Senior Secondary School with (5As), Onyeka Peter Nchezor Peter of the Providence International Senior High School, West-Urban, Freetown, Alie Julius Alie
of the Saline High School, Freetown, West-Urban with (5As)
The Minister ended congratulating all candidates, parents and most especially the teachers adding that they won’t stop having expectations of them because the future depends on it enjoining all to keep transforming education and learning for all!
As Cost Of Living Soars, Difficult Times Lie Ahead…
By Ranger
In reaction to the unprecedented rise in the cost of living that has eroded the purchasing power of millions of people living on or below the UN poverty of $2 a day, politics is no longer the answer to their problem, as their problem is how to earn more to meet their daily survival needs.
Towards this, sympathetic President Bio New Direction Government that promised the nation in 2018 to address the most fundamental existential need of the people – bread and butter – now finds itself between the rock and a hard place in fulfilling that promise as inflation, a falling Leone and ever rising market prices make fulfilling that promise look like chasing a mirage in the Sahara desert.
True to its commitment to addressing the needs of the people, the Government has since the Corona pandemic hit the world in 2020 being putting in place proactive economic controls and humanitarian packages to cushion the effects on the poor and vulnerable.
Sadly, the result has been like trying to block a broken levee. In this latest effort to stem the flowing tide of inflation, the President last weekend announced 25 percent increase for pensioners and public sector workers. It also announced 30 % subsidy on fuel and food. Without wanting to dampen the Government’s effort, we know from recent past events that this too will not help reduce cost of living.
Wages harmonization was a step in the right direction to correct the gross inequality in wages between less than 1 percent of the work force and the vast majority that earn less than Le2M per month.
Thus, if you give 25 percent increase to someone earning above Le20M a month and one earning less than Le2M a month, you have made the former richer. Therefore what continues to fuel the growing hardship in this country is that huge percentage of national revenue goes towards wages and salaries of the privileged few and frivolous Government expenditure at a time when austerity should be the way out.
Thus, as long as the Government continues to spend far more than it earns, there is no way that it can stem the tide of inflation which directly affects cost of living.