From 72% to 38%: “WAEC has failed us” – Parents, Groups call for exam cancellation

From 72% to 38%: “WAEC has failed us” â€" Parents, Groups call for exam cancellation

Following the poor performance of candidates in the recently released 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), many parents, educators, and stakeholders are now calling for the cancellation and possible re-conduction of some key papers, especially English Language and Mathematics.

WAEC had earlier announced that only 38.32% of candidates obtained credits and above in a minimum of five subjects including English and Mathematics, a massive drop from 72.12% recorded in 2024.

The sharp decline has sparked nationwide outrage and concern about systemic failures in Nigeria’s education sector.

On social media and education platforms, parents expressed anger and disbelief at what they described as ‘avoidable failure’.

In a post on the Concerned Parents and Educators (CPE) platform, Adegoke Bimpe Atoke lamented:

“Almighty WAEC has done it again. The pregnancy of a few months ago has finally been birthed. Mass failure in Mathematics and English.
450-word essays written with phone torchlight at 10:30 pm under the rain, with candidates swatting mosquitoes.
How did we arrive here?
Our systems need drastic, strategic, urgent reforms. I can’t even eat. I have lost appetite.
Which way is the way forward?
If WAEC is not working and has lost relevance, can we have something else? A better mechanism that will address our context as a country?”

Another parent, Abiodun Adesanya Adeleke, joined the call for a retake of the English Language paper, citing irregularities.

“The necessary body should help to do the needful. The English Language is supposed to be retaken with all the nonsense that happened on that day.
Students writing exams till past 9:00pm with torchlight and in mosquito-infested classesâ€"how do we call that a standardized exam?”

However, some teachers defended WAEC, blaming logistical failures at some centers.
Mr. Adebayo Ifeoluwa, a teacher in Lagos, said:

“Exams in my school started and ended on time. When things like this happen, who should we blame? No exam is scheduled to be done at night, so who’s at fault? Thinking out loud.”

Beyond logistical lapses, stakeholders also raised concerns over the difficulty level of the objective sections.

A WAEC insider revealed that a key reason for the failure was the introduction of serialization in objective questions:

“Question number one for a candidate may be question number 20 for another. So, the era of reading out or copying the same answers was gone. Most of the candidates did not do well in the objective papers.”

A commentator, Rex Oscar, questioned the validity of the results.

“Some people will still say it’s because the students didn’t read.
We know students didn’t readâ€"but you cannot tell me over 70% of our SS3 students didn’t.
Even those who did very well in JAMB failed English.
The government needs to set up an inquest to probe this.”

Speaking on the broader issues in the sector, Alhaji Haruna Danjuma, National President of the National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria (NAPTAN), said:

“One may say the level of examination malpractice has gone down. But that is just one of the factors.
Do we have the teachers that can deliver what is needed in the required number?
Many states have refused to engage new teachers.
Also, some parents cannot afford to buy necessary textbooksâ€"the prices have gone out of reach.
Teachers’ welfare is critical. When a teacher is thinking of what to eat and how to survive, how can he give his best?
Parents also have to take more interest in their children’s education.”

As the call grows, WAEC and the Federal Ministry of Education are yet to issue an official response to the increasing demands for cancellation and reform.