The National Examination Council, (NECO) recently, released the results of the 2024 Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) for Internal candidates, which was conducted between June and July 2024.

The Registrar of NECO, Prof Dantani Wushishi, while announcing the result in Minna, Niger State, said the results were released 55 days after the last paper was written.

According to him, a total of 1,376,423 candidates, comprising 706,950 males and 669,473 females registered for the examinations but 1,367,736 (706,950 males, & 669,473 females) sat for the examination.

This is against 1,205,888, comprising of 621,084 males and 584,804 females who registered in 2023 and 1,196,985, representing 616,398 males and 580,587 females who eventually sat for the examination.

According to the statistics obtained from NECO, a total of 828,284 representing 60.55 per cent of the 1,367,736 candidates who sat the examination, had at least credits in five subjects including English Language and Mathematics.

Out of the 1,147,597 candidates representing 83.90 per cent, had five credits and above, irrespective of English and Mathematics.

While in 2023 the number of candidates with five credits and above, including English and Mathematics is 737,308, representing 61.60% and number of candidates with five credits and above, irrespective of English and Mathematics is 1,013,611, representing 84.68per cent.

Analysis of performance by States

A breakdown of 2024 SSCE results performance according to states showed that Abia state is leading in obtaining five credits and above including English and Mathematics with 83.40 per cent. 10,856 candidates sat for the examinations and 9.054 obtained five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

This is followed by Imo State with 80.98 per cent, having a total of 23,741 candidates sitting for the examination and 19,226 passed with five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

Ebonyi State came third with 80.55 per cent with a total of 13,386 candidates who sat for the examination and 10,782 obtained five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

Cross River and Delta states followed with 76.68 per cent with 17,155 candidates sitting for the examination and 13, 154 obtained five credits and above including English and Mathematics and 76.29 per cent with 21,189, candidates and 16,165 secured five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

Other states with high performance include Ogun with 75.73 per cent, Ekiti with 75, 48 per cent, Bayelsa with 75.29, Lagos with 73.48 and Kebbi state with 72.51 per cent.

However, in the 2023 results, Abia State also came top with 85.3 per cent followed by Imo state with 80.80 per cent while Kebbi and Lagos came third and fourth position with 80. 55 and 75.88 per cents respectively.

Other top performers include Taraba with 75.79 per cent, Ogun State with 71.92 per cent, Delta with 71.76 per cent, Cross River with 71.13, Anambra with 70.79, Osun with 70.66 and Ebonyi 70. 15 per cent.

The analysis of the two year results showed that Abia and Imo states has maintained the first and second position consecutively of top performing states in the last two years while Kebbi, Cross River, Delta, Ogun, and Lagos states have remained among top 10 performing states in no particular order.

Analysis of state with low performance

A breakdown of the statistics showed that Katsina State has the lowest in performance with 70,553 candidates who sat for the examination and 29,633 getting five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

This is followed by Kano State with 44.42 per cent having had 146,917 candidates sitting for the examination and only 65,264 passed with five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

The third low performing state is Jigawa with 46.84 per cent after 34,013 candidates sat for the examination and only 1, 931 were able to obtain five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

Others are Borno and Zamfara states, with the former having 36,477 candidates participation and only 17, 502 scored five credits and above including English and Mathematics while the latter has 48.68 per cent with 28,949 participation and 14,091 having five credits and above including English and Mathematics.

For the analysis of the 2023 results, Zamfara came least with 39.10 per cent while Niger State followed with 46.87 and Jigawa with 49.63 respectively.

Other two states at the low performance are Katsina State with 51.10 per cent and Adamawa with 51.86 per cent.

However, in 2024 Katsina and Zamfara threaded places as the former came top of least performing states while the latter came fifth.

Analysis of performance in general subjects

A breakdown of the performance of the 2024 results by subjects showed that out of 1,353, 211 candidates that sat for the English examination, 46,621 (3.45%) passed with A1, 109.980 (8.13) had B2, 141. 551 (10.46%) had B3, 718,737 ( 53.11%) had C4,C5 & C6 and 54,021 (3.99%) had F9

For Mathematics, 1, 353, 478 sat for the examination out of which 49, 669 (3.67%) scared A1, 76, 343 (5.64%) had B2, 175,092 (12.94%) with B3 and 752,946 (55.63%) had C4C5&C6 while 58,723 (4.34%) had F9.

For Civic Education, 1, 347, 532 sat for the examination, 35,546 (2.50%) had A1, 92,786 (6.89%) had B2, 185.069 |(13.73%) have B3 and 727,969 (54.02%) had C4, C5 & C6 while 50,353 had F9.

For 2023 results, out of 1,187, 462 that sat for the English Language, 39,614 (3.34%) has A1, 79,279 (6.68%) has B2, 157,242 (1324%) has B3 while 659, 613 (55.82%) have C4, C5 & C6 and 48, 340 (4.07%) have F9.

For Mathematics, 1, 185, 695 sat for the examination out of which 50,974 (4.30%) scored A1, 76, 591 (6.46%) had B2, 114,806 (9.68%) with B3 and 653,462 (55.11%) had C4,C5 &C6 while 49,486 (4.17%) had F9.

For Civic Education, 1, 182,084 sat for the examination, 49, 804 (4.21%) had A1, 60,828 (5.15%) had B2, 162.544 (13.75%) have B3 and 633,708 (53.61%) had C4, C5 & C6 while 23,804 had F9.

This is to show that more students perform better in Mathematics than in English language.

Analysis on exam malpractice

According to the results, the number of candidates involved in various forms of malpractice in 2024 is 8,437 as against 12,030 in 2023, which shows a reduction of 30.1%.

For 2024, an analysis of the data showed that the 8,437 candidates involved in malpractices cut across different subjects. Leading the table is English Language with 2,168 candidates involved, while Biology followed with 982, and Marketing has 884, Mathematic 855 and Civil Education, with 656 candidates.

These are followed by physics with 635 candidates, Islamic studies 538, Government 455, Literature in English 453 and Economics 447.

For 2023, an analysis of the data showed that the 12,030 candidates involved in malpractices had Mathematics leading the table with 2,301 candidates involved, while English Language followed with 2,049, and Civil Education, with 843 candidates.

These are followed by physics with 767 candidates, Economics 698, Animal Husbandry 660, Biology with 588, and Chemistry 516 candidates, Marketing had 499 candidates, Computer Science 498, Literature in English 465 and Government 403.

Other subjects like Arabic, Catering, Igbo and Fishery, among others, have fewer candidates, ranging from 1 to 18, involved in malpractice.

However, in the last few years the numbers of candidates involved in malpractice has continued to drop.

Registrar speaks

Prof Wushisi had disclosed that 40 schools were found to have been involved in whole school (mass) cheating in 17 states.

He said: ?They will be invited by the Council for discussion, after which appropriate sanctions will be applied. One school in Ekiti State was recommended for de-recognition for mass cheating in two core subjects and one science subject.

?Similarly, 21 supervisors were recommended for blacklisting due to poor supervision, aiding and abetting, abscondment, extortion, drunkenness and negligence in 12 states,? the registrar said.

The registrar had also confirmed that candidates from Abia State led other states as they scored five credits and above, including Mathematics and English Language, making 83.40 per cent.

?The state also leads in candidates with five credits and above irrespective of Mathematics and English language 95.84 percent,? he said.

He also disclosed that for least performed states with five credits and above, including mathematics and English Language, Katsina came last on the table with 42 per cent. This is just 2.42 per cent ahead of Kano, which came second to last with 44.42 per cent.

Educationist Speaks

An educationist, Michael Ojonugwa said there seem to be improvement in the outcome of the results generally even though some states have challenges and are lagging behind.

He said states that performed well still have high number of students participating and good outcome as well and that is encouraging, ?But we must also understand that some states lke Zamfara and Jigawa has less participation and lesser good outcome so they need to be encouraged considering the situation of insecurity in the state.?

On examination malpractice, he said it is impressive that the number is reducing even though it may not be eradicated completely because of the involvement of supervisors and school owners who wants their students to come out tops.

?Students with the aid of their parents will keep trying to engage in malpractice in whatever form, just to clear their paper at one sitting, but the onus is not just on the exam bodies to keep them in check but on we the school owners, teachers, and supervisors to stop our involvement,? he said. (Daily Trust)

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