WASSCE Candidates’ Weaknesses In Social Studies And Remedies | Extract From Chief Examiners Report For WASSCE 2023
Teachers preparing students for any examination are always worried about the potential weaknesses in answers that their students will provide during the examination. Fortunately, the main examining body, the West Africa Examination Council always provide candidates’ weaknesses in Social Studies during the last held examination.
WAEC Summary of 2021 WASSCE Social Studies Paper Two (2)
A. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(1) Majority of the candidates adhered to the rubrics of the paper.
(2) For their strengths, most candidates were able to:
(i) explain the concept capabilities of individuals well.
(ii) outline socio-cultural practices that have outlived their usefulness
and explain ways by which traditional music and dance promote
national development.
(iii) outline reasons for which people marry and measures couples
can take to resolve their challenges.
(iv) explain the term peace building and give reasons for which ethnic conflicts
should be discouraged.
(v) highlight the roles of local industries in the socio-economic development of
Ghana
B. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
The weaknesses identified in candidates’ scripts were that;
(1) Some of the candidates had difficulty with the spelling of words that
relates to the paper.
(2) Some candidates had difficulty in providing answers to some of the
questions. They could not:
(i) list the elements of social environment.
(ii) describe ways by which the physical environment influences the
activities of man
(iii) discuss ways in which human resource can be effectively utilized
in Ghana.
(iv) discuss ways of preventing autocratic rule in Ghana.
C. SUGGESTED REMEDIES TO THE WEAKNESSES
(1) Candidates must read the recommended text books to be familiar with
literature and vocabulary of the subject.
(2) Tutors must ensure that candidates study all the topics in the Social
Studies syllabus and gain mastery of the contents before they sit for the
paper.
(3) Teachers must help candidates to understand ways by which the physical
environment influences the activities of man.
(4) Teachers must help candidates to discover the ways in which human
resource can be effectively utilized in Ghana.
(5) Teachers must ensure candidates know the ways of preventing autocratic
rule in Ghana
WAEC Summary of 2020 WASSCE Social Studies Paper Two (2)
A. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(1) Majority of the candidates adhered to the rubrics of the paper.
(2) Most candidates answered questions on the following topics well. They provided the
correct points required and explained them.
(i) Socio-cultural practices that promote societal development.
(ii) Agencies responsible for the socialization of the child.
(iii) Sources of conflict in the Ghanaian society.
(iv) Names of financial institutions operating Ghana and benefits of financial security
to the individual.
B. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
(1) Some of the candidates had difficulty with the spelling of some technical words.
(2) Some candidates had difficulty in answering questions on the following topics. They
could not provide all the right points and explain them
(i) Usefulness of Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs theory.
(ii) How Ghanaians misconstrue the implication of independence.
(iii) Ways of developing human resource for national development.
C. SUGGESTED REMEDIES
(1) Candidates must read the recommended text books to be familiar with literature and
vocabulary of the subject.
(2) Tutors must ensure that candidates study all the topics in the Social Studies syllabus
and gain mastery of the contents before they sit for the paper
WAEC Summary of 2019 WASSCE Social Studies Paper Two (2)
A. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(i) Majority of the candidates adhered to the rubrics of the paper.
(ii) Most candidates answered questions on the following topics well. They provided the
required correct points and explained them.
(a) The Institution of Marriage.
(b) Responsible parenting.
(c) National Independence and Self-reliance
(d) Promoting National Socio-economic Development.
B. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
(i) Some of the candidates had difficulty with the spelling of words that relates to the
paper.
(ii) Some candidates had difficulty in answering questions on the following topics. They
could not provide all the right points and also explain them:
(a) Socialization and Social Environment.
(b) Our Physical Environment and Environmental Challenges
(c) Leadership and Followership
(d) Rights and Responsibilities of citizens
(e) Science and Technology
(f) The world of Work and Entrepreneurship.
C. SUGGESTED REMEDIES TO THE WEAKNESSES
(i) Candidates must read the recommended text books to be familiar with literature and
vocabulary of the subject.
(ii) Candidates must study all the topics in the Social Studies syllabus and ensure they gain
mastery of the contents before they sit for the paper.
WAEC Summary of 2018 WASSCE Social Studies Paper Two (2)
A. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(1) Almost all the candidates understood the rubrics of the paper and chose the five questions
from the three sections.
(2) Many candidates understood the questions they selected and presented good answers to
them in appropriate paragraphs. They started each question on a fresh page.
(3) A good number of candidates gave precise answers to the questions and expressed
themselves well in good English and in their own words. This showed they were prepared
for the paper.
(4) Majority of the candidates wrote legibly, and this made marking of their scripts very easy.
B. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
(1) Few candidates did not obey the rubrics of the paper and answered more than the required
number of questions from some sections. Section A was outstanding.
(2) Very few candidates had bad handwritings, and this made reading of their scripts
difficult.
(3) There were a lot of wrong spellings and wrong choice of words including pidgin English
in majority of candidates’ scripts. E.g. ‘sake of’ instead of ‘because of’, ‘providing threz
as thumber’ instead ‘providing tress for timber’, ‘avoidance of impuper mning’ instead of
‘avoidance of improper mining’.
(4) Some candidates wasted their time providing long and unnecessary introductions which
did not earn them any marks.
(5) Some candidates had problems with the following topics hence they could not handle the
questions on them well.
(i) Responsible parenting.
(ii) Our physical environment.
(iii) Education and social change.
(iv) Peace building and conflict resolution
(v) Leadership and followership
(vi) Rights and Responsibilities of the individual
(vii) Promoting National Socio-Economic Development
(viii) The world of work and entrepreneurship
C. SUGGESTED REMEDIES TO THE WEAKNESSES
(1) Teachers must explain the rubrics of the paper very well to candidates before they sit for
the paper. Candidates must also read and understand the rubrics of the paper. This will help
them choose the required number of questions from the various sections.
(2) Candidates must try as much as possible to write legibly so that their scripts will be easy
to read. They can achieve this through the writing of a lot of essay scripts and copying of
notes.
(3) Candidates must read Social Studies textbooks and use the dictionary in order to acquire
the correct vocabularies for the subject. They must also avoid the use of pidgin English in
examination scripts.
(4) Candidates must read and understand the questions they choose and give precise answers
to the questions. They must try to express themselves in simple English language as they
present their answers.
(5) Candidates must ensure they master the content of all the topics in the syllabus before they
sit for the paper.
It the hope of our team that candidates will perform better when teachers and candidates go through this summary of strengths, candidates’ weaknesses in Social Studies and remedies and apply same
Reference: waecgh.org
About Author
Join our social media platforms
Join Educative News Room for regular updates about related topics
Join Telegram or Join WhatsApp or Join Facebook or Join Twitter(X)