BECE 2015: Chief Examiner's Report for Religious and Moral Education
GENERAL COMMENTS
1. STANDARD OF THE PAPER
The
standard of the paper compared favourably with that of previous years. All the
questions were chosen from a wide range of topics from the syllabus.
2. PERFORMANCE OF CANDIDATES
There
was a general improvement in the performance of the candidates over that of
last year in the areas of organization, adherence to the rubrics and legibility
of handwriting. These improvements therefore translated into satisfactory
performance
3. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ STRENGTHS
(1)
Majority of the candidates organized and presented their
points satisfactorily.
(2)
Most candidates adhered to the rubrics of the paper and
provided the required number of points for their responses.
(3)
Some candidates presented their answers in legible
handwriting with clarity of expression.
(4)
Majority of the candidates exhibited adequate understanding
of the question and provided good examples to support their answers.
4. SUMMARY OF CANDIDATES’ WEAKNESSES
(1)
Some candidates tackled the questions without adequate
understanding and therefore deviated.
(2)
Some candidates wrote elaborate introductions, which were not
required for the responses.
(3)
Some candidates did not answer any questions at all.
(4)
Most candidates had numerous grammatical errors and poor
spellings in their answers.
(5)
Few candidates had handwritings that were bad and difficult
to read
(6)
Candidates did not obey the rubrics of the paper. They
answered more than the required number of questions for the paper.
(7)
Some of the candidates did not indicate their index numbers
on their answer booklets.
5. SUGGESTED REMEDIES
(1)
Teachers should advise candidates to read and understand
questions before they tackle them.
(2)
Teachers must take candidates through question answering
techniques to equip them and to adequately prevent them from presenting
unnecessary materials.
(3)
Candidates must ensure they are properly prepared for the
paper before presenting themselves for the examination.
(4)
Parents and teachers must encourage candidates to read a lot
of books to enrich their grammar.
(5)
Teachers must take candidates with poor handwriting through
some writing skills to ensure their handwritings are legible.
(6)
Teachers must stress the rubrics of the papers to candidates
and advise them to read and understand every bit of information on the question
paper before they provide their responses.
(7)
Invigilators and supervisors must ensure all candidates fill
the front page of their answer booklets with their personal details before they
start answering the questions.
DETAILED COMMENTS
Question 1
(a)
Write on how Joseph came to
live in Egypt.
(b)
Mention four moral lessons
learnt from the story.
This
question was a popular one and was well attempted by a third of the candidates,
except that a few deviated and wrote on the aftermath of Joseph’s arrival in
Egypt. This phenomenon affected marks obtained by the candidates.
Candidates
were expected to narrate the story which include the following points,
(i)
Joseph was the son of Jacob and his wife Rachael.
(ii)
Jacob loved Joseph more than any of his 12 children, because
he was the son of his old age.
(iii)
For this reason, Jacob made a beautiful robe with long
sleeves for Joseph.
(iv)
His brothers hated him for this favouritism among other
points.
Candidates
should therefore read Genesis 37:1-38, for
the full story.
The ( b) part was poorly attempted as most candidates did not
understand the phrase ‘moral lesson’ .Candidates were expected to deduce moral lessons from the
story but
most
candidates were unable to address the question adequately. Some of the notable
values expected to be presented include the need to:
(i)
Overcome material gains,
(ii)
Listen to good counsel or advice
(iii)
Avoid bad friends/company/ peers
(iv)
Avoid hatred/ jealousy/ evil/
(v)
Beware of deceptive suggestion/ exercise caution, etc.
Candidates
are therefore advised to read passages carefully with the intent to extract
moral lessons and to relate the message to general issues.
Question 2
(a) Outline five contributions of Caliph Abu Bakr to
Islam.
(b) State two lessons that can be learnt from the life of Caliph
Abu Bakr.
The
question was not popular, as very few candidates attempted it. Those who
attempted it scored high marks therefore giving an indication of some amount of
adequate preparation. Responses expected from candidates include the following:
(i)
Abu Bakr was the first Caliph to succeed Prophet Mohammed.
(ii)
Helped in the collection of various fragmented verses to make
the Quran into a single book.
(iii)
Helped to build the mosque of Medina and paid for the land on
which it was built
(iv)
Helped the prophet Mohammed to fight many jihads (Holy war)/
he formed a well-trained army / he was a great warrior.
(v)
Taught Muslims the Hajj rites and rituals, etc.
The
(b) part was poorly answered as candidates could not extract the lessons
derived from the Caliph Abu Bakr. The candidates had difficulty in bringing out
the lessons attributed to the works and life of the personality under review.
The
lessons that could be derived from Caliph Abu Bakr’s life among others include:
(i)
Be willing to use wealth for the work of Allah / Good cause.
(ii)
Have courage to sacrifice all we have for the faithful
service of Allah. (iii) Endure all forms
of trials and tribulations for the faithful service of Allah
(iv)
Be honest, trust worthy and truthful in our deeds.
(v)
Help the poor and needy in society
Q3.
(a) Narrate
the traditional myth which explains the separation between man and God (b) Give
four examples of the character of humankind from the story in (a) above:
This
question was the most popular one in this section. More than half of the
candidates answered this question. It was well answered for both question (a),
and (b), and candidates scored high marks.
A
few candidates however deviated by narrating the creation story narrated by
Christians,
(Bible). This implied that candidates did not understand the question.
Further
more candidates could not give the required examples of the character of
mankind.
The
traditional religious narration story of the separation between man and God
comes in two separate accounts and candidates could choose one.
The
following points apply:
(i)
God once lived very close to man.
(ii)
Man could touch him and feel his presence.
(iii)
Due to the disobedience of man, God withdrew from man.
(iv)
An old woman was pounding fufu everyday
(v)
She kept hitting God with her long pestle
(vi)
God warned her to desist from the practice
(vii)
But this activity continued until one day God withdrew and
went to his present abode, i.e. the sky.
(viii)
Man tried to bring God back by making a ladder, but they
could not get closer to him.
The
other account is from the Mende of
(Sierra Leone). In this account,
(i)
God was close to man
(ii)
He gave man permission to ask for anything that he wanted
(iii)
Everyday man went up to him for their needs
(iv)
Man’s demand became so incessant that God became worried
(iv) God therefore removed himself from them and went up to the
heavens
(vi) A time came
when there were no restrictions at all in the communication between God and
man.
The
(b) part required that candidates should
provide examples of the character of mankind from the narration above. Some candidates were unable to adequately
address this part as they were expected to pick out behavioural traits. The
answers expected from candidates include the following: man was
(i)
Dishonest
(ii)
Greedy/ selfish
(iii)
Disrespectful
(iv)
Rebellious/ lawless
(v)
Irresponsible, among others.
Question 4
(a)
Describe four processes
involved in showing repentance.
(b)
Outline four reasons for showing regret
for one’s wrong deed.
This
question was as popular as other questions. A good number of candidates failed
to describe the processes involved at showing repentance. Where the processes
were listed, candidates failed to expand them.
Furthermore,
some of the candidates made meaningful statements without identifying the
various processes. Performance was creditable.
The following responses were required:
(i)
Acknowledgement: Realising one’s fault or wrong
action as sinner or wrong doer and accepting full responsibility for one’s
actions.
(ii)
Regret: Showing regret / remorse
for doing wrong, or for the bad deeds done.
(iii)
Pardon: Request for pardon or
forgiveness – Approach the one we have wronged and humbly apologize.
(iv)
Cease: Avoid the wrong thing again.
Need not to repeat such deeds.
The
(b) part required candidates to indicate why there is the need for regrets and
over 40% candidates addressed this part properly.
Question 5
(a) List five factors to be considered before greeting someone.
(b) Why it is important to greet someone.
This question was popular
with candidates with over fifty percent of candidates attempting it. In spite
of its popularity, candidates’ performance was on the average.
Candidates
were required to give examples to support the factors which most candidates
failed to address hence the average performance.
For
the (b) part, most candidates repeated their points and therefore did not earn
any additional marks.
Question 6
(a)
State three dangers associated with self-medication.
(b)
Suggest four ways of checking trade in drugs.
This
question was the most popular question because a lot more candidates attempted
it. Some candidates did not know that self-medication is the same as drug
abuse, or the wrongful use of drugs without medical prescription. Performance
was poor apparently due to the difficulty of understanding the question.
There
were isolated cases of excellent performances however.
The
(b) part was quite challenging to most students as the candidates discussed how
drugs should be made wholesome instead of how to check the abuse.
Question 7
(a) What is recreation?
(b) Give four advantages of recreation.
This
question was not popular because just a few of the candidates chose it. Most
candidates did not understand the concept “recreation”, and wrote about the
process of recreation of the earth or creating (reproducing). Candidates scored
zero marks, due to this deviation.
Candidates
were expected to demonstrate understanding of recreation by defining /
describing/showing the meaning of recreation. The following responses were
expected.
(i)
It is a state of not working/ spare time (i.e.) being free
from normal activities/ school work
(ii)
It is the constructive use of time/ making good use of time.
(iii)
It is a state of leisure when one does something for
enjoyment, amusement or pleasure eg, going on nature walks, swimming, reading,
listening to music, watering films, excursions, playing game etc.
(iv)
Recreation or leisure time is usually planned and controlled/
it is different from idleness.
In
the (b) part, responses were wrong because candidates deviated in 7a.
Question 8
(a)
What are human rights?
(b)
Explain any four human
rights.
This
question was by far a very popular question. Majority of the candidates
attempted and scored higher marks, candidates were able to raise the following
points:
(i)
They are freedoms which are generally accepted that every
living person should have or enjoy.
(ii)
They are things a person is entitled to have because the law
of the land permits or allows them.
(iii)
They are claims of individuals supported by law. That is if
someone infringes on someone’s rights, he may sue him in court for redress,
etc.
(iv)
The purpose of the declaration is to promote and encourage
respect for human rights and basic freedoms.
(v)
The declaration sets out what people should have the right to
life freedom, security, Nationality, property etc.
The
(b) part was equally well answered with meaningful explanations and relevant
examples in support of the points raised.
You Might Also Like:
Chief Examiner's Report on BECE 2018 pdf
Chief Examiner's report on BECE 2017 pdf
BECE Chief Examiner's Report 2017 pdf
Chief Examiner's report 2017 BECE
Chief Examiners Report
Chief Examiners Report 2017 pdf
Chief Examiner’s Report on BECE 2017
Chief Examiner's report on BECE 2017 pdf
BECE Chief Examiner's Report 2017 pdf
Chief Examiner's report 2017 BECE
Chief Examiners Report
Chief Examiners Report 2017 pdf
Chief Examiner’s Report on BECE 2017
.webp)
No comments: