Weakness and Remedies

       Majority of the candidates were unable to:

• describe the process of formation of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks;
• give reasons why it is best to raise tomato in the nursery before transplanting;
• complete the table on crop diseases;
• state the advantages of the taungya system;
• explain layering, cutting and grafting as methods of vegetative propagation;
• give reasons why farmers in West Africa prefer to raise chickens than turkeys;
• state the roles of reproductive hormones in farm animals;
• state the advantages and disadvantages of the battery cage system;
• explain the effects of rural-urban migration of agricultural production in West Africa;
• mention the ways by which government can reduce rural-urban migration for agricultural development.

Based on the observed weaknesses, the Chief Examiners recommended as follows:

• Adequate coverage of the syllabus. Emphasis on aspects of the syllabus such as diseases and pests of crops and farm animals is advocated;
• The acquisition of practical skills in the subject through field visits, excursion;
• Exposure of candidates to technical terms used in agriculture;
• Only graduates of Agricultural Science/Agriculture should be allowed to teach the subject in Senior Secondary Schools in West Africa.