On Monday, August 26, 2024, seven students at Labone Senior High School were excluded from the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) due to arriving late.
According to school officials, this was the second instance of tardiness by these students during the exams. This information was disclosed during a visit by Deputy Minister of Education, Rev. John Ntim Fordjour, who was at the school to monitor the examination process and extend his best wishes to the candidates.
Headmistress Rejoice Akua Acorlor expressed her concerns about the situation, explaining that the students had been briefed thoroughly on the examination rules. She emphasized the importance of punctuality and urged parents to reinforce this value with their children.
“We wrote Social Studies today as one of the courses. We started on time, and before the exam, we had briefed the students on what WAEC expects from us. They were instructed to arrive at least 30 minutes before the start of the exam and to be seated on time,” Acorlor told Citi News.
She added, “We expected them to arrive one hour before the exam started and were able to seat those who arrived on time. However, after one hour and twenty minutes, some students arrived. According to WAEC guidelines, we cannot admit latecomers who arrive too late.”
Acorlor also mentioned that these students had previously been tardy during their visual arts papers, and this repeated behavior made it challenging to allow them entry this time. “If they had arrived 20 or 30 minutes late with valid reasons, we might have made exceptions. Unfortunately, they arrived late again with no acceptable reasons, so we could not admit them,” she said. “As a headmistress and a mother of this school, I am disappointed when students miss their exams.”
In response, Deputy Minister Rev. Ntim Fordjour stated, “The rules are very clear, and I need to investigate the specific details of this incident before making any decisions. There are established rules for every examination, and I urge all stakeholders to adhere to them. I will look into this particular situation to understand what happened.”
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