AN ANALYSIS OF THE SUCCESS RATE OF CANDIDATES WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT IN THE CAMEROON GENERAL CERTIFICATE EXAMINATION ORDINARY LEVEL (2015–2025)

Abstract

The Cameroon General Certificate of Education (GCE) Ordinary Level examination serves as a critical gateway to advanced secondary education and employment. Candidates with visual impairment have historically faced disproportionate barriers in accessing and succeeding in high-stakes examinations, yet empirical evidence documenting their candidate-level success trajectories remains scarce in the Cameroonian context. This study analyzed and interpreted the candidate-level success rates of visually impaired candidates in the GCE Ordinary Level examination over an eleven-year period (2015–2025), with the aim of identifying performance patterns and informing targeted intervention strategies. Using anonymized subject-level result data obtained from the Cameroon GCE Board for 206 candidates with visual impairment across eleven examination sessions, this study applied the official GCE candidate-level success criterion: a candidate was classified as having passed the examination successfully only if they obtained the  passing grades (A, B, or C) in at least four subjects. Descriptive statistics were computed to determine annual success rates, subject-load distributions, and longitudinal trends. The overall eleven-year candidate-level success rate stood at 35.9% (74 out of 206 candidates). Annual success rates fluctuated significantly, ranging from 0.0% in 2017 to 57.9% in 2024. In the 2025 examination session, only 39.1% of candidates with visual impairment (9 out of 23) met the success threshold. A substantial proportion of candidates (21.4%) entered the examination with fewer than four subjects, rendering success practically impossible for this study. Among those who did complete, English Language emerged as the most frequently attempted compulsory subject, while Mathematics presented the most difficult barrier to success. The findings reveal a persistent success crisis among visually impaired candidates that has not substantially improved over the review period. Urgent policy attention is required to ensure that candidates with visual impairment are afforded equitable opportunities to accumulate the minimum subject passes required for certification.

Keywords: visual impairment, GCE ordinary level, candidate-level success, inclusive education, Cameroon, high-stakes examination

Ethics and Conflict of Interest

All ethical rules were observed at each stage of the research. The author declares that he acted in accordance with ethical rules in all processes of the research. The author declares that they do not have any conflict of interest with other persons, institutions or organizations.

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