The Senate, on Tuesday, queried the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, and the Head of the National Office of the West African Examinations Council, Dr. Amos Dangut, over the new guidelines introduced by the examination body for candidates writing the 2025/2026 Senior Secondary Certificate Examination.

The guidelines, according to a motion sponsored by Senator Sunday Karimi (APC – Kogi West), altered the subject requirements for SS3 students preparing for the 2025/2026 May/June examinations.

Karimi expressed concern that the sudden changes could lead to mass failure next year, as candidates would be compelled to sit for papers they had not been adequately prepared for.

Senators contributing to the debate noted that while the changes might be progressive, the timing would place undue pressure on the candidates.

They, therefore, called for the exclusion of the 2025/2026 SSCE candidates from the new guidelines and recommended that the changes take effect from the 2027/2028 examinations to give students adequate time to prepare.

In his submission, Senator Adams Oshiomhole (APC – Edo North) cautioned against imposing the new guidelines on the current SS3 class.

“We wake up and think of an idea and begin to implement it. For a new subject to start, the citizens should be well-informed to prepare for it. Do we have enough teachers? Have we prepared the laboratories? That evidence doesn’t exist.

“We don’t have to plan in a manner that will cause us embarrassment,” he said.

Also, Senator Idiat Adebule (APC – Lagos West) said that while she supported the motion, the matter should be thoroughly investigated.

According to her, the National Council on Education, which comprises commissioners of education from the 36 states, is usually involved in decisions of this nature.

On his part, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Senator Adeola Olamilekan (APC – Ogun West), argued that students must be properly taught before they can be examined to prevent mass failure.

“Students need to have prior knowledge of the new subjects before they can be examined on them by WAEC. So, the Minister of Education has some questions to answer,” he added.

President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, before concluding the debate, queried the removal of Computer Studies and Civic Education from the subject list.

“Everything is going digital. So why are we removing Computer Studies and Civic Education? The children need to know their national anthem and their civic obligations to their nation.

“In any case, we should conduct a proper investigation to be sure that this information is even correct,” Akpabio said.

The matter was referred to the Senate Committee on Basic and Secondary Education to report back to plenary in two weeks. (The PUNCH)

Update news