The Minister for Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has announced that Ghana’s National Standardized Test will shift to a cohort-based assessment model to better track learner progress from the basic level.
Speaking during a monitoring tour of Osu St. Peter’s RC Basic School and Osu Salem 1 KG and Primary School on Monday, Mr. Iddrisu said the new approach will follow the same group of pupils from Primary Two through Primary Four to Primary Six.
“The new approach marks a significant shift from previous assessment cycles, where different groups of pupils were tested at each stage,” the Minister stated.
Under the previous model, different cohorts were assessed at each grade level, making it difficult to measure individual academic growth over time.
With the cohort-based system, the same learners will be assessed at P2, P4 and P6, allowing the Ministry and stakeholders to track progress, identify learning gaps early, and evaluate the impact of interventions more accurately.
Mr. Iddrisu said the tour was to assess the conduct of this year’s National Standardized Test and to ensure that schools are adhering to testing guidelines.
He added that data from the new model will help inform policy decisions, teacher support, and resource allocation to improve learning outcomes nationwide.
The National Standardized Test is administered annually to assess pupils’ proficiency in literacy and numeracy at key stages of basic education.