7 Visually Impaired Denied Opportunity To Write WASSCE Exams

Seven visually impaired candidates of the Adidome Senior High School, in Central Tongu District of Volta Region, reported at the examination centre yesterday fully poised to write their papers in the West Africa Senior Secondary Certification Examinations.

But the confidence of these students were completely shattered when they were informed by the invigilators that their Braille question papers have not been printed.

Worse still, their names and index numbers were not included in the attendance sheet.

The candidates, including one girl, were among the first batch of Braille students who were registered to sit for the examinations.

These came to light when the District Chief Executive (DCE), Madam Mary Theodora Agbenyenu, paid a surprise visit to the centre to wish the candidates success in the examinations.

The headmaster of the school, Mr Elias Kwaku Avor, said that in all, 549 candidates, including the seven visually impaired candidates were expected to sit for the exanimations.

“We are all very sad and disappointed about what has happened and we will take the matter up with the Special Education Unit,” he told the DCE.

On her part, the DCE urged the school to pursue the matter with priority and find out if an alternative arrangement could be made for the candidates to write their papers at a later date.

Things took an extremely emotional turn when the distressed candidates found their way to the headmaster’s office to register their disappointment and anger, telling him that they had been treated unfairly and most contemptuously.

They then rushed to their dormitories, shut themselves in, and refused to come out.

An attempt by this reporter and the DCE to meet them turned fruitless.