WAEC IN PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES

BYMULIKAT A. BELLO (ALHAJA, MRS.)

REGISTRAR, WAEC

INTRODUCTION

WAEC is:• a 5-nation organization;• made up of Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone,

The Gambia & Liberia;• established in 1952 by Ordinances of the four

pioneer member countries;• Liberia became the 5th member country in

1974.

INTRODUCTION CONTD.

WAEC’s Mandate:• determine the examinations required in the

public interest;• conduct such examinations ;• award certificates of international standard.

WAEC EXAMINATIONS

WAEC conducts:• International examinations;• National examinations• Others ( aptitude tests and examinations

conducted on behalf of other exam. bodies).

WAEC VISION AND MISSION

Vision:• To be a world class examining body , adding

value to the educational goals of its numerous stakeholders.

WAEC’s VISION AND MISSION CONTD.

Mission:• West Africa’s foremost examining body,

developing and maintaining internationally accepted procedures in examinations, providing qualitative and reliable educational assessment, encouraging academic excellence among the youth, and promoting international cooperation.

WAEC’s EXAMINATIONS & OTHER ACTIVITIES

• International Examinations;• National Examinations;• Aptitude Tests;• Examinations conducted on behalf of other

examination bodies.

STANDING RELATIONSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES

• WAEC products form Universities’ raw materials;

• WAEC’s exams have predictive validity – successful candidates in WAEC exams without hint of malpractice perform well in universities;

STANDING RELATIONSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES CONTD.

• WAEC shares the passion and concern of universities for malpractice-free assessment;

• Introduced a number of malpractice-control measures:

Photo-embossed certificates;e-registration of candidates;on-line result-checker facility;on-line result verification facility.

PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES

Result verification facility:• Before:Direct request to WAEC per candidate;Purchase of hard copy of result print-out per

exam for =N=100,000.00 only;Problems:High man-hour demand;Possible compromise;

PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES CONTD.

cumbersome storage;possible loss of result pages;delay in verification.

At present:• Omnibus result verification:purchase of a CD containing the consolidated

result per exam. for =N=I50, 000.00 only;

PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES CONTD.

• CD is with an accompanying search engine for roaming within a range (to locate specific candidate);

• CD is attached/identified to unique systems to avoid unauthorized entry/movement.

Main problem:• Usage is restricted to the unique system to

which it is attached.

PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES CONTD.

Other possibilities/areas of partnership:• Industry Standard Verification/Admission

Facility:Allows verification of candidate’s result before

admission;Involves a handshake/interface between the

university data platform and WAEC data platform;

PARTNERSHIP WITH UNIVERSITIES CONTD.

• Aptitude testing for: selection/streaming;staff recruitment at all levels;staff placement/promotion;scholarship.

• Research into and Seminars on educational curriculum/assessment issues.

CONCLUSION

• Appreciation – for existing relationship;• Hope for greater ties/partnership;• Faith in our ability and capability (WAEC and

Universities) to work together and take the required giant strides, meet the emerging challenges and smoothen the pathway(s) to quality assurance in post-Basic education in Nigeria.

LAST WORDS

THANK YOU FOR THE HONOUR

OF YOUR AUDIENCE