Cheating is corruption, we’ll not tolerate it – Mahama on WASSCE invigilation

President John Dramani Mahama has warned that examination cheating amounts to corruption and will not be tolerated, pledging stricter invigilation in future West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE).

Addressing this year’s conference of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), the President said allowing malpractice at the senior high school level damages the moral foundation of young people and undermines national development.

“Cheating in examination is corruption and it’s sad to encourage our children to be corrupt at such an early stage in their lives,” Mahama said. “Ethical integrity is key to their future.”

He stressed that the education system must promote honesty and hard work rather than shortcuts driven by pressure to record artificial success. According to him, students should enter examination halls confident in their preparation, not reliant on dishonest practices.

“We’ll not give up strict invigilation and therefore we must be able to enter the exam hall with confidence and pass our exams through diligence and school work rather than by cheating,” he said. “I pledge that we will work with the teachers’ associations to make that work.”

President Mahama expressed deep concern about the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results, describing them as a wake-up call for the country. He said authorities had been “shocked by the outcome,” which exposed long-standing weaknesses within the system.

He pointed to what he described as a culture of silence around widespread cheating in examination halls across the country.

The President accused some heads of schools of either looking on or turning a blind eye to malpractice, despite being required to sign performance bonds tied to achieving a 100 percent pass rate.

“All this has been done to embellish the performance of some batches of SHS graduates to make some people look good,” he said, warning that such practices ultimately harm students and the credibility of Ghana’s education certificates.

The 2025 WASSCE results showed a notable decline in performance, particularly in core subjects such as Mathematics and Social Studies, compared to 2024.

Pass rates dropped significantly, triggering public concern and prompting a government-ordered probe into both teaching standards and examination integrity.

Education analysts attributed the poor outcomes to weak concept application, especially in Mathematics, declining performance in STEM subjects such as Physics, and persistent challenges with curriculum delivery and teaching quality. Examination malpractice was also identified as a major systemic problem.

In response, government has announced a return to the international WASSCE format in 2026 as part of broader reforms aimed at restoring credibility and strengthening standards.

Mahama said tackling malpractice would require collective responsibility, adding that teachers, school administrators, parents, and students must all commit to safeguarding the integrity of Ghana’s examinations.