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The 1HR News Desk

The 1HR News Desk covers education policy, examinations and student opportunity in Ghana and internationally. Every article is checked against a primary source - a ministry release, an examinations council notice, or the awarding body's own page - before it is published, and corrections are made in the open.

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Articles by The 1HR News Desk

Choosing a home tutor: the questions that actually predict progress Teaching & EdTech Choosing a home tutor: the questions that actually predict progress Qualifications tell you what a tutor knows. These questions tell you whether your child will learn anything from them. 4 min read Cut-off points explained: why a good aggregate still misses a programme Exams & Results Cut-off points explained: why a good aggregate still misses a programme A cut-off point is not a pass mark set in advance. It is the aggregate of the last candidate admitted — which is why it moves every year and why nobody can tell you it in advance. 4 min read Marking faster without marking worse Teaching & EdTech Marking faster without marking worse Most marking time goes into comments students never read. Redirecting that effort is how teachers recover hours a week without lowering the standard of feedback. 4 min read A lesson plan that survives contact with a real class Teaching & EdTech A lesson plan that survives contact with a real class Most plans fail in the first ten minutes, for reasons that have nothing to do with the content. Here is what to build in so that yours does not. 5 min read Finding an internship that is not unpaid photocopying Careers Finding an internship that is not unpaid photocopying The difference between a useful internship and a wasted vacation is almost always settled before it starts, in questions most students are too polite to ask. 4 min read How the WASSCE aggregate is calculated, step by step Exams & Results How the WASSCE aggregate is calculated, step by step The aggregate is a sum of grade points from six subjects — the core, plus your three best electives. The rule about which electives count is where most errors happen. 4 min read What a school should ask before buying an edtech subscription Teaching & EdTech What a school should ask before buying an edtech subscription Most abandoned school software was bought after a good demonstration and before anyone asked who would run it. Six questions that decide whether a subscription survives the first term. 4 min read The graduate CV mistake that costs interviews before anyone reads a word Careers The graduate CV mistake that costs interviews before anyone reads a word Most rejected graduate CVs are not rejected on content. They are rejected because the reader could not find the three things they were looking for. 4 min read National Service: what your posting decides, and what it does not Careers National Service: what your posting decides, and what it does not A posting sets where you spend a year, not what the year is worth. The difference between a service year that opens doors and one that disappears is mostly what you do inside it. 5 min read Schools are adopting AI tools faster than they are writing rules for them Teaching & EdTech Schools are adopting AI tools faster than they are writing rules for them Teachers are already using generative tools for planning and marking. The gap is not capability — it is the absence of a written position on what is acceptable. 5 min read How to answer "tell me about yourself" when you have no work experience Careers How to answer "tell me about yourself" when you have no work experience The opening question is not asking for your life story or an apology. It is asking whether you understand the job — and that can be answered without ever having held one. 4 min read How to check a WASSCE result without handing your PIN to a stranger Exams & Results How to check a WASSCE result without handing your PIN to a stranger A checker voucher is a PIN and a serial number. Anyone holding them can spend them — which is why where you type them matters far more than where you bought them. 4 min read BECE and WASSCE grading: why the two cannot be compared Exams & Results BECE and WASSCE grading: why the two cannot be compared The two exams use different grade scales for different purposes, which is why a raw grade from one tells you almost nothing about performance in the other. 4 min read What the school placement process actually decides, and what it does not Education News What the school placement process actually decides, and what it does not Placement decides where a candidate is offered a seat. It does not decide whether they can raise a problem, transfer, or find a school with capacity — and confusing the two costs families money. 5 min read Remarking a WASSCE result: how the review works and when it is worth requesting Exams & Results Remarking a WASSCE result: how the review works and when it is worth requesting A review is a re-check of the marking, not a second sitting. Understanding what it can and cannot change is what separates a useful request from a wasted fee. 4 min read What parents should actually check before paying school fees Education News What parents should actually check before paying school fees Fee disputes almost always trace back to something that was never written down. What to establish in writing before any money moves. 4 min read Self-placement: what it is, when it opens, and what it cannot fix Education News Self-placement: what it is, when it opens, and what it cannot fix Self-placement lets a candidate who was not matched choose from schools with remaining space. It is a real second chance, and it is not a route into a school that is full. 4 min read How to read a school prospectus without being sold to Education News How to read a school prospectus without being sold to A prospectus is a marketing document, and reading it as one is not cynical. The useful information is in what it specifies and what it carefully does not. 4 min read Boarding or day school: the costs and trade-offs nobody itemises Education News Boarding or day school: the costs and trade-offs nobody itemises The fee difference is the visible part of the comparison and rarely the decisive one. What to weigh beyond the invoice, including the costs a day place quietly transfers to the family. 5 min read