ERC Calls on Education Minister to Clear the Air over Confusion on Implementation of New School Curriculum

No to Use of New Curriculum and CBT for 2026 May/June SSCE!

The Education Rights Campaign (ERC) frowns at a fire brigade approach to recent policies introduced separately by the Federal Ministry of Education and West African Examinations Council (WAEC), something which have created a clouded atmosphere in the education sector at present. Therefore, we call on the Federal Ministry of Education to intervene in the ongoing confusion over the subjects to be examined in the 2026 West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) for school candidates and indeed, suspend the commencement of the new school curriculum until next academic session. We also call on the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) to suspend the commencement of the use of Computer Based Test (CBT) model for school candidates because of an egregious lack of adequate preparation for it.

We note that the Federal Ministry of Education has reportedly directed that the new curriculum should start with students in Primary 1, Primary 4, JSS 1 and SSS 1. However, given that the announcement of the curriculum was done shortly before the new session started, schools were not prepared for it going into a new session. Indeed, at present when the first term calendar has passed the half-mark, there are no textbooks to guide teachers and students. This is why we call for the suspension of the curriculum and a shift of the commencement to next session in order to have time for adequate preparation vis-à-vis production of textbooks and training of teachers.

What is even more worrisome is the plan by WAEC to use the curriculum as the basis for the next WASSCE to be taken by the current SSS 3 students. We have had reports from different secondary schools that the SSS 3 students have been asked to register for newly introduced subjects which of course they have not been taught since SSS 1 class. For instance, in the new curriculum, students in Business or Commercial Class will no longer offer Government, which has been replaced with Marketing. So, the SSS 3 Business students have been asked to register for Marketing and not Government which they have offered since SSS 1. Also, trade subjects have been overhauled and completely changed, and therefore, expectedly the SSS 3 students have not been taught the new ones. Yet, the students are expected to sit for new trade subjects in the next WASSCE. All this is ludicrous.

We note that a statement issued by the WAEC on October 28 which was purportedly meant to provide clarification over the 2026 SSCE was evasive and only ended up to still keep the schools, students and parents in the dark. Nonetheless, it indirectly passed on the buck to the government. It stated: “The development and regulation of Curricula in Nigeria is within the purview of the Federal Government. WAEC, as an examination body, only comes in to implement government policies via assessment.”

Therefore, WAEC is suggesting that it is following the lead of the Federal Government in coming up with its ridiculous and illogical subject prescriptions. But the Federal Ministry of Education appears to have pushed back. Folashade Boriowo, press director at the ministry, reportedly told TheCable that only WAEC can answer to how it is going about implementing the curriculum (TheCable, November 8). This is utterly absurd, and it smacks of shirking of responsibility by the ministry. How can the ministry which has clearly stated the new curriculum, for the senior secondary school, starts with the SS 1 conveniently choose to look the other way when it appears WAEC is disregarding the directive?

We call on Education Minister Tunji Alausa to clear the air and put his house in order. We demand that the current SSS 3 and SSS 2 students must be examined only on the subjects they have been taught since SS 1; in other words, on the basis of the old curriculum. This is what is reasonable and just.

Again, we call for the postponement of the use of CBT model for the examination of school candidates until the government at all levels and proprietors are able to put in place in schools the necessary facilities that will enable an effective running of CBT based examination. A timeframe, say 3 years, must be set for this.

Given a humongous number of school candidates and location of many of the schools in rural areas with no private CBT centres nearby, using CBT model and the limited private CBT centres would be enormously logistic-burdensome. The May/June examination for school candidates is not the same as that for private candidates who are fewer and take exam in urban areas. Besides, WASSCE, in which students separately sit for nine subjects including answering essay questions and some subjects have practicals, is a whole different beast compared to JAMB’s UTME which is a one-off 2-hour multiple-choice examination. Therefore, adequate facilities and preparation are crucial, something which is not possible between now and next May. Therefore, conducting the next SSCE for school candidates with CBT will be a fiasco.

Ogunjimi Isaac

National Deputy Cordinator.

Adaramoye Michael Lenin

National Mobilization Officer.

Email: [email protected]