DETERMINING THE CONSTRUCTS MEASURED BY THE WEST AFRICANSENIOR SCHOOL CERTIFICATE EXAMINATION (WASSCE): A STUDY OFCONSTRUCT VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY

Abstract

This study examined the construct validity and reliability of the West African Senior School Certificate
Examination (WASSCE) administered by the West African Examinations Council. Specifically, it investigated
the extent to which WASSCE measures intended cognitive constructs through content representation and internal
structure evidence. The study adopted an instrumentation and validation research design within a mixed-method
framework. A total of 1,125 examination items from Mathematics, English Language, and Biology (2019–2023)
were analyzed using Bloom’s revised taxonomy, while student response data from 1,240 SS3 students were
subjected to Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and reliability analysis. Findings revealed that 85% of items
assessed lower-order cognitive skills, while higher-order thinking was minimally represented. EFA results showed
a dominant general factor accounting for 48% of variance, indicating weak multidimensional structure. Reliability
coefficients ranged from .79 to .84, indicating acceptable internal consistency. The study concludes that while
WASSCE is reliable, its construct validity is limited due to construct underrepresentation and weak cognitive
differentiation. It is recommended that WAEC redesign test blueprints to strengthen higher-order cognitive
assessment and adopt construct-based validation frameworks.