According to a publication by Graphic Online, final-year junior high school (JHS) students across the country are set to take three new subjects in this year’s Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) for School Candidates.
The new subjects include Career Technology, Creative Art and Design, and Arabic. Career Technology and Creative Art and Design, derived from the previous Basic Design and Technology (BDT) course, will be mandatory for all candidates, as stated by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).
However, Arabic will be an optional subject for candidates attending Islamic basic schools. With the addition of these new subjects, the 2024 examination will now span six days instead of the usual five, running from Monday to Friday.
The examination is scheduled to commence on Monday, July 8, 2024, and conclude on the following Monday, July 15, 2024.
Shedding more light on the 2024 examination, WAEC’s Head of Public Affairs, John Kapi, informed the Daily Graphic that new subjects could be incorporated at any time, given that the examination is uniquely Ghanaian, allowing the government to dictate the curriculum and examination content.
Mr. Kapi mentioned that the council has completed candidate registration and is now in the process of organizing the breakdown of candidates based on the subjects they will be writing.
He assured that WAEC is fully prepared for the examination, with all necessary meetings concluded, and sample questions distributed to schools and posted on the council’s website.
He said the subject could be best described as an elective, and could also be written by persons who believed they were proficient in it and wanted a certificate to that effect.
Per the official timetable released by WAEC, candidates will write English Language and Religious and Moral Education on Monday, July 8, 2024.
On Tuesday, July 9, 2024, candidates will write Science and Computing, which was previously Information, Communication and Technology (ICT), and then write Social Studies and Creative Art and Design on Wednesday, July 10, 2024.
The Ghana Education Service has announced the subjects that will be included in the upcoming BECE for School Candidates.
The mandatory subjects for all candidates include English Language, Mathematics, General Science, Social Studies, Religious and Moral Education, Career Technology, and Creative Art and Design.
Additionally, Ghanaian languages have been classified as elective subjects, while French, Arabic, and Computing are listed as optional subjects.
