Gracious Future Academy

SOMETHING NICE AND INSPIRATIONAL ❤️

CAREER DAY @ Gracious Future Academy
THEME: UNEARTHING POTENTIALS FOR GOOD CITIZENSHIP

*Scrap the Stanine: Give Our Children a Fairer BECE Grading System*

Every year when the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) results are released, thousands of families are left confused, frustrated, and in some cases, heartbroken. Parents who know their children to be high-performing suddenly find them saddled with grades that don’t match their effort or mastery. The culprit is not the teachers. It is not the students. It is the system itself.

For years now, Ghana has been grading BECE candidates using the stanine system, a method that compares students against one another instead of measuring them against the curriculum standards they have been taught. It is what academics call a norm-referenced test. Under this method, no matter how well a cohort performs, only a fixed percentage can occupy each grade band. For example, just 4% of candidates can ever receive Grade 1, while another 4% must always be assigned Grade 9.

This means even if half the class scores above 80 percent, only a handful will be rewarded with the top grade. A child who scores 90 percent could still be denied a Grade 1 simply because others scored slightly higher. Excellence, instead of being rewarded, becomes relative. It turns learning into a statistical competition rather than a demonstration of knowledge.

*Why the Stanine Hurts Students*

The dangers of this system are obvious. First, it demoralizes students. Hard work and mastery are not always reflected in the final grade, which undermines motivation. Second, it distorts the purpose of education. The national curriculum was carefully designed to set learning standards. Yet the stanine system ignores these standards and rewards only relative positioning. Third, it creates inconsistency across cohorts. A Grade 2 in 2023 may not mean the same as a Grade 2 in 2024, because the grades are pegged to group performance, not actual achievement.

*A Better Way Forward*

There is a tried and tested alternative: the criterion-referenced system. This is the approach used in most parts of the world. Here, students are measured directly against curriculum standards. If 80 percent and above is the benchmark for excellence, then every student who meets that threshold receives recognition. It is transparent, fair, and consistent.

With criterion-referenced grading, parents can trust that their child’s grade truly reflects what they know and can do. Policymakers, too, gain reliable data to track national progress over time. A Grade 1 in 2024 would mean the same thing as a Grade 1 in 2025, making it possible to monitor improvement across the years.

*A Call for Change*

Ghana has invested heavily in curriculum reforms to make education more relevant to the demands of the 21st century. But these gains risk being undermined if our assessment system continues to rank children like contestants in a race rather than learners striving to meet clear goals.

It is time for policymakers, WAEC, and the Ministry of Education to scrap the stanine system and return to a curriculum-based approach. Our children deserve a fairer, more transparent, and more empowering system, one that recognizes genuine mastery and builds confidence instead of confusion.

*Because in the end, education should be about what our children know, not how they compare.*

Written by Adams Saaka


Ghana Education Service
The West African Examinations Council - WAEC, GHANA
Ministry of Education GH

The Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation. is excited to announce that we have officially reached our target of 100 partner schools in our Character Education Initiative across Ghana by 2025!
This remarkable achievement is a testament to our shared commitment to equipping educators and inspiring thousands of students with essential character traits such as respect, responsibility, honesty, and more.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to every school that has embraced this vision and partnered with us on this transformative journey.
Together, we are developing essential character traits in our learners for good citizenship!
Please join us in celebrating this incredible milestone!


Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation.

Scenes from our 2025 EDUTRIP.
Kotoka International Airport Accra Osu Castle Kofi A. Tawiah Foundation.

Scenes from our visit of Osu Castle and Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park

Edutrip Kotoka International Airport Accra