Multiple disruptions create a perfect storm behind 2025 WASSCE performance decline 

The release of the 2025 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results has sparked widespread public concern following a noticeable decline in national performance, reversing the steady improvements recorded in recent years.
Although the development has fueled political conversations, education stakeholders say a deeper analysis reveals that the dip cannot be attributed to sudden policy shortcomings.
Instead, it reflects a complex interaction of long-standing disruptions that shaped the learning journey of this particular cohort.
Mr Frank Adjei-Worlanyo, a teacher sharing his views on the situation with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), explained that the 2025 candidates represent a group whose education was “severely stretched” by a series of shocks spanning five years.
He described the trend as a “perfect storm,” suggesting that the performance decline is rooted in prolonged systemic challenges rather than recent administrative actions.
Mr Adjei-Worlanyo said the candidates were in their final year of Junior High School (JHS) during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020/2021.
This period, he said, was characterised by lengthy school closures, irregular reopening arrangements and a fragmented academic calendar, all of which significantly disrupted learning.
He noted that although emergency remote learning was introduced, many students struggled due to limited access to digital devices, unreliable internet connectivity, and insufficient preparation for online instruction.
“These obstacles, he added, resulted in substantial learning loss, particularly in core subjects such as Mathematics, English Language and Integrated Science.”
According to him, the cumulative impact of these foundational gaps became more pronounced when the students transitioned into Senior High School (SHS).
“Here, they were confronted with the nationwide rollout of major educational reforms, including the full implementation of the Common Core Curriculum (CCC). Teachers were simultaneously adjusting to new content and teaching strategies, while students were trying to bridge earlier learning deficits. This double pressure, he said, created an unprecedented academic burden for the cohort.”
Mr Adjei-Worlanyo, who also serves as the Communications Officer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the Akan Constituency, pointed out that the country’s return to the traditional academic calendar—after years of pandemic-related alterations—reduced the time available for intensive exam preparation.
He said unlike previous cohorts that benefited from extended instructional periods and sustained revision sessions, the 2025 candidates had to navigate a compressed and demanding schedule.
Education analysts argue that these interrelated challenges collectively shaped the performance trends reflected in the 2025 WASSCE results.
They emphasise that the decline should not be viewed through a partisan lens, but rather as evidence of the prolonged effects of global disruptions and the difficulties associated with new curriculum implementation.
Stakeholders are, therefore, being urged to shift the national conversation from blame to solutions, focusing on targeted learning recovery initiatives, enhanced teacher support, and stronger oversight of curriculum rollouts.
They caution that the 2025 outcome serves as a reminder that educational setbacks can have long-term impacts—and that sustained, collaborative interventions are needed to ensure that future learners are better equipped to thrive despite systemic transitions.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah/Kenneth Odeng Adade
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Dec 3, 2025