Hurray! — 2010 BECE over

Story: Hadiza Nuhhu-Billa Quansah

The curtain on the 2010 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE 2010) was brought down on Friday, April 23, 2010, throughout the country.

This year’s candidates had to go through less stress to write the examination as the time-table was made flexible, which showed in their composure after each paper each day.

For those who did not register for the Ghanaian Language and French, the examination was over for them when they  completed the Basic Design and Technology Paper Two on Thursday morning.

According to some of them, they had no French teachers and, therefore, did not register for  French. Those who did not write both French and Ghanaian Language registered for only five subjects out of the seven subjects which were written this year.

This means that those with five subjects wrote just one elective subject and may have to compete with those who wrote all the seven subjects for admission to the senior high school (SHS). 

On Friday afternoon, between 12 :15p.m. and 1:30p.m, candidates from some of the public and private schools in Accra were spotted by the Junior Graphic gleefully singing and dancing at the Labone Senior High School centre.

At 12:15pm when the bell of the French Two was rung, some of the candidates from Holy Star Academy were seen pouring talcum powder on their heads, signifying a graceful completion of one educational level. 

At the St Joseph’s JHS centre at Adabraka, some of the candidates who could not believe they were really done with the examination decided to pour water on themselves and were screaming all over in excitement.

Unfortunately, some of their colleagues from the Liberty Avenue and Ghana Lebanon Islamic Secondary (GLISS) JHS could not join the fun as they had to return  to their schools the desks which they carried to the centre for the examination.

At the Aquinas Senior High School centre, students from the Yahousua JHS and SDA JHS were seen in their beautiful year group T-shirts which had their names printed on them.

 In all, 350,888 candidates from 10,016 schools participated in this year’s BECE.

A total number of seven subjects were written by most candidates. They were Mathematics, English Language, Social Studies, Integrated Science, Basic Design and Technology, Ghanaian Language and French.

Apart from the petty problems with question papers, answer sheets and inadequate number of pencils, this year’s examination ended without any official reported leak in any part of the country.