- Entrance exams to replace BECE if Free SHS bill is passed
- Secondary education will become 6 years when the bill is passed
- There will be no BECE and no BECE certicate after the bill is passed.
When the Ghanaian parliament passes the Free SHS bill, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum, the Minister of Education, will replace the BECE, which grades and places junior high school final-year students into SHS, with a new senior high school entrance exam.
The decision to retire the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) will allow students to take the Senior High School (SHS) entrance exam.
On August 8, 2024, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum revealed the revelation on the GTV Breakfast Show.
He stated that in the 21st century, completing senior high school was critical. Per the new assessment for junior high school students, they will not earn a certificate for the entrance exam, as has been the case whenever they write the BECE.
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This also implies that until they take the senior high school leaving examination, also known as WASSCE, students who complete basic school and junior high school will not receive any certificates of completion.
The minister added that the government will provide the final funding to ensure that Ghanaian children in school receive a quality secondary education.
The junior high school will no longer be considered a lower secondary school or a part of the basic school under the Free SHS bill.
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This will result in six years of basic school and six years of secondary education. “This bill classifies Junior High School as lower secondary and removes it from basic schools, thereby establishing a six-year secondary education system in Ghana.” Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum made this statement during his speech on GTV.
He noted that lower secondary schools can operate separately but will offer the same opportunities for learning as senior high schools. He added that by making secondary education compulsory, he eliminated the need for the BECE as a certificate exam.
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