The Head of Public Affairs at the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) Ghana, John Kapi, has urged mathematics teachers to give students more exercises designed to improve their understanding of mathematical language.

He said many candidates continued to struggle with translating word problems into mathematical statements, despite the improvement recorded in their overall mathematics performance.

Speaking in an interview on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Monday, September 7, 2026, Mr Kapi said students’ difficulty in interpreting questions pointed to weaknesses in both language comprehension and mathematical application.

“I think the issue has to do with the level of language that the candidates have and being able to shift from one area to another,” he said.

“The candidates are unable to appreciate the use of the language, especially in mathematics. So, that is one thing that teachers may have to look at.”

Mr Kapi said teachers should expose students to more exercises that would help them identify, interpret and respond appropriately to different forms of mathematical questions.

“Maybe they should have a lot more exercises in that particular area, where the candidates should be able to look at these, identify them and then be able to answer questions appropriately,” he stated.

His comments followed an assessment of the Chief Examiners’ reports for 2025 and 2026, which identified three recurring weaknesses among candidates, representing mathematical information in diagrams, translating word problems into mathematical statements and solving problems in global mathematics.

Mr Kapi noted that the difficulty with word problems was also highlighted in the previous year’s report, when some students complained that they did not understand the questions.

“Understanding the question is part of the response that you are going to present,” he explained.

Despite the persistent challenges, Mr Kapi said candidates recorded a significant improvement in mathematics, performing well in areas including arithmetic progression, coordinate geometry and the application of business mathematics.

He suggested that teachers might have studied previous Chief Examiners’ reports and adjusted their teaching methods accordingly.

“Probably, the teachers have studied the Chief Examiner’s report and have made some improvements or changes in their teaching methodology,” he said.

Mr Kapi added that candidates might also have undergone repeated practice to familiarise themselves with emerging examination-question patterns.