Baccalauréat, GCE kicks-off in serenity in Douala

The examinations started hitch-free despite the downpour in the economic capital.

The 2015 Baccalauréat and the General Certificate of Education, GCE examinations have begun in the port city of Douala. Chiefs of Accommodation Centres, invigilators and thousands of students yesterday, June 1, 2015, braved the tempting morning rains to be at their various centres on time.

At Lycée Joss in the Douala I Council area, among the 767 candidates who registered for Bac 4, C, D, E and Bac T, 759 were in class before the sound of the takeoff bell. Of the 767 candidates, the Head of Secretariat, Michelle Ndolike, disclosed that three were visually-impaired, while eight were absent.

The visually-impaired students, the Chief of Centre, Jean Kouny, said were in a separate class and monitored by three invigilators, among them a visually-impaired person. The centre is known for hosting not only visually-impaired, but also students with other forms of physical challenges, including deafness.

At the Government Bilingual High School, Deido, which is an Accommodation Centre, of the 857 candidates that registered for the 2015 Baccalauréat examination, 36 students did not show up.

The Chief of Centre, Pascal Bias disclosed that none of the close to 50 invigilators complained of any case of examination malpractices during Philosophy in the morning, French Language and French Literature in the afternoon.

For the General Certificate of Education, GCE, some 2,785 candidates wrote Economics Paper One in the morning and Economics Paper Two in the afternoon. Of the total number of candidates, 1,833 are sitting GCE Ordinary Level while 952 are for GCE Advanced Level.

The Chief of Centre, Pascal Bias, noted with satisfaction that all the students were present. GBHS Deido, it should be noted, is one of the largest accommodation centres in Douala.

At about 11am in the school premises, students admitted that Economics Paper One was not out of reach, stressing that only those who did not take their bookwork seriously will say the contrary.

As at press time, most candidates were on break, looking for something to eat while others stayed in their various classrooms, preparing for the afternoon paper.