Classroom Crisis: English Hits 4-Year Low, WAEC Cancels 8,295 Results

The sharp decline in students’ performance in English Language, along with the cancellation or withholding of the results of 8,295 candidates, has raised fresh concerns over the state of education and examination discipline in the country.

While thousands of students are celebrating improvements in Mathematics, Integrated Science, and Social Studies following the release of the provisional 2026 West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) results, the picture is less encouraging in English Language.

The Executive Director of Education Watch (EduWatch), Kofi Asare, has described the continued decline in English performance as worrying and called for urgent remedial action, particularly at the basic school level.

The concern comes at a time when the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) has also cancelled or withheld the results of thousands of candidates following investigations into examination malpractice.

English Performance Falls Again

According to WAEC, the proportion of candidates who obtained grades A1 to C6 in English Language fell from 69.00% in 2025 to 62.40% in 2026.

This latest figure continues a four-year decline in the subject. English performance dropped from 73.11% in 2023 to 69.52% in 2024, then to 69.00% in 2025, before falling further to 62.40% this year.

Mr. Asare said the trend was particularly worrying because English is central to students’ ability to understand lessons, communicate effectively, and perform well across other areas of education.

Speaking on Channel One TV on Saturday, September 5, 2026, he said the decline suggested that weaknesses in students’ foundational literacy skills may be following them from the basic school level into secondary education.

“However, there’s a worrying trend of further decline in performance in English, which requires remedial action,” he said.

He called for stronger measures at the basic school level, including the provision of adequate numbers of teachers, improved learning materials, effective supervision, and better support and motivation for teachers.

The decline in English contrasts sharply with the improvements recorded in the other three core subjects.

Mathematics recorded an increase in the proportion of candidates obtaining A1 to C6, rising from 48.73% in 2025 to 60.75% in 2026.

Integrated Science also improved from 57.74% to 62.08%, while Social Studies recorded the biggest increase, moving from 55.82% in 2025 to 78.04% in 2026.

Mr. Asare said the improvements were encouraging and could indicate that some interventions introduced after learning gaps were identified in previous years were beginning to produce results.

Social Studies recorded its strongest performance in recent years, with about 78% of candidates obtaining A1 to C6.

However, the gains in the other subjects have not been enough to hide the growing concern over English, which has continued to move in the opposite direction.

8,295 Candidates Face Sanctions

Beyond the performance figures, the release of the 2026 WASSCE results has also brought renewed attention to examination malpractice.

WAEC said investigations into reported irregularities led to the cancellation or withholding of the results of 8,295 candidates.

The Council cancelled the subject results of 7,434 candidates for bringing foreign materials, including prepared notes, textbooks, and printed materials, into examination halls.

The entire results of another 861 candidates were cancelled for possessing mobile phones in the examination halls.

WAEC also withheld the subject results of 957 candidates and the entire results of 270 candidates over various suspected offences.

The decisions were approved by the 42nd Meeting of the Ghana Examinations Committee, held on Friday, August 7, 2026, after investigations into cases of irregularities recorded during the examination.

169 Schools Still Under Investigation

The examination malpractice cases, however, do not end with the results already cancelled or withheld.

WAEC said some subject results involving candidates from 169 schools have also been withheld over alleged collusion.

Those cases remain under investigation, leaving affected students uncertain about the final status of their results.

The Council said the withheld results could either be released or cancelled, depending on the outcome of the investigations, which are expected to be completed by October 30, 2026.

A total of 512,862 candidates from 1,022 schools registered for the 2026 WASSCE.

This number comprised 225,270 males and 287,592 females and represented an 11.07% increase over the 461,736 candidates who registered in 2025.

WAEC recorded 5,049 absentees, representing 0.98% of the total number of registered candidates.