WAEC Syllabus for English Language 2025/2026 - ScholarsSeeders – NECO, WAEC, JAMB & Scholarship Updates

The 2025 WAEC Syllabus for English Language has been officially released by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC). This syllabus is designed for both internal and external candidates preparing for the exam. 

Below is the updated English Language WAEC syllabus for 2025/2026, which highlights the aims and objectives, scheme of examination, and detailed topics to study.

Aims and Objectives

The WAEC Syllabus for English Language 2025 is designed to enable candidates:

• Use correct English in both speech and writing.

• Write about incidents in English that suit specific audiences and situations.

• Organize ideas into well-structured paragraphs that are logical, spatial, and chronological.

• Construct accurate sentences with proper control of grammar.

• Apply a variety of sentence patterns in their work.

• Observe rules of grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

• Comprehend written and spoken English with understanding.

• Recognize implied meanings, tones, and attitudes in different texts.

• Speak English with an acceptable pronunciation that others can easily understand.

• Identify, isolate, and summarize relevant information from given passages.

See also: WAEC Syllabus for Foods and Nutrition

Scheme of Examination

Candidates will be required to attempt three papers. The marks allocation differs slightly across countries:

• 220 marks – The Gambia and Sierra Leone.

• 200 marks – Nigeria.

The structure is as follows:

1. Paper 1 – Essay Writing, Comprehension, and Summary (2½ hours) – 120 marks.

2. Paper 2 – Multiple Choice Questions (Lexis and Structure) (1 hour) – 50 marks.

3. Paper 3 – Oral English (45 minutes) – 50 marks (The Gambia and Sierra Leone).

• For Nigeria: Test of Orals (45 minutes) – 30 marks.

WAEC Syllabus 2025 for English Language (Official Release)

Detailed English Language Syllabus

Section A: Essay Writing (50 Marks)

• Time allowed: 50 minutes.

• Five questions will be set; candidates must answer one.

• Questions will test the ability to express ideas clearly and communicate effectively in writing.

Types of writing may include:

• Letters

• Speeches

• Narratives

• Descriptions

• Debates / Argumentative Essays

• Reports

• Articles

• Expositions

• Creative Writing

Assessment will focus on:

• Content – relevance of ideas to the topic and audience.

• Organization – paragraphing, logical flow, and proper use of formal features.

• Expression – vocabulary, style, and sentence variety.

• Mechanical Accuracy – grammar, punctuation, and spelling.

• Minimum length – 450 words.

Section B: Comprehension (40 Marks)

• Time allowed: 50 minutes.

• Two passages will be given, each about 300 words long.

• Questions will test candidates’ ability to:

  • Find synonyms or equivalents for words/phrases.

  • Understand factual content.

  • Draw inferences from the passage.

  • Identify emotions, tones, and attitudes.

  • Recognize grammatical structures and sentence patterns.

  • Explain expressions and literary terms.

  • Recast sentences into correct grammatical alternatives.

Passages will be drawn from modern English texts on social, cultural, political, and economic issues.

Section C: Summary (30 Marks)

• Time allowed: 50 minutes.

• A passage of about 500 words will be provided.

• Candidates will be required to:

  • Extract only relevant ideas.

  • Present points clearly and concisely.

  • Summarize according to the set requirements of the question.

  • Avoid redundancy, repetition, and irrelevant details.

Paper 2: Lexis and Structure

Lexis

Questions will test candidates’ understanding of vocabulary used in daily life and specialized fields such as:

• Building, Plumbing, Fishing

• Finance, Commerce, Banking, Insurance

• Journalism, Printing, and Publishing

• Mineral Exploration and Manufacturing Industries

• Transport (road, rail, sea, air)

• Government and Politics

• Sports and Entertainment

• Religion

• Science and Technology

• Education

• Military

• Media and Advertising

Additional focus areas include:

• Idioms and Collocations – e.g., “hook, line, and sinker”, “every Tom, Dick, and Harry”.

• Figurative Usage – distinguishing literal from figurative language.

Structure

Candidates will be tested on:

• Word forms (e.g., number, tense, degree).

• Sentence construction and how words combine into larger grammatical units.

• Correct usage of structural words (prepositions, conjunctions, determiners, etc.).

Paper 3: Oral English (50 Marks)

This paper will test candidates’ knowledge of oral English. There will be three alternatives:

• Alternative A – For school candidates in The Gambia and Sierra Leone.

• Alternative B – For private candidates in The Gambia and Sierra Leone.

• Alternative C – For Nigerian candidates only.

Alternative A: Listening Comprehension

This is a Listening Comprehension Test consisting of 100 multiple-choice questions. It will cover the following areas:

• Recognition of consonants, consonant clusters, vowels, diphthongs, stress, and intonation.

• Understanding dialogues and narratives.

Sections to be tested include:

1. Test of word-final voiced/voiceless consonants in isolated words (may also include consonant clusters).

2. Test of vowel quality in isolated words.

3. Test of vowel and consonant contrasts in isolated words.

4. (One of the following will be tested each year):

   • Vowel/consonant contrasts in sentence contexts.

   • Word contrasts (minimum four).

   • Rhymes for vowel/consonant contrasts.

5. Test of rhyming.

6. Test of comprehension of emphatic stress.

7. Test of understanding intonation in short dialogues.

8. Test of comprehension of longer dialogues and narratives.

Consonants

(a) Single Consonants
Candidates must recognize and produce all sound contrasts in the English consonantal system.

Examples:

• they – day

• ship – chip

• fan – van

• pit – bit

• card – guard

• gear – jeer

(b) Consonant Clusters
Candidates must recognize and produce consonant clusters both at the beginning and end of words.

Examples:

• play – pray

• sting – string

• scheme – scream

• crime – climb

• missed – mixed

• seats – seeds

Vowels

Candidates should recognize and produce all vowel contrasts in English.

(a) Pure Vowels
(b) Diphthongs
(c) Triphthongs

Examples:

• seat – sit

• pack – park

• pair – purr

• hard – heard

• hat – heart – height – hate – hut

• caught – cot – cut – curt

• pool – pull – pole

Stress

(a) Word Stress
Candidates must differentiate between stressed and unstressed syllables. Stress may shift depending on word form, leading to changes in vowel quality.

Examples:

• INcrease (noun) – inCREASE (verb)

• REcord – reCORD

• CONvict – conVICT

(b) Sentence Stress

• Stress usually falls on nouns, main verbs, adjectives, and adverbs.

• Pronouns, auxiliaries, and possessives are generally unstressed unless for emphasis.

• English is a stress-timed language, so stressed syllables occur at regular intervals.

(c) Emphatic Stress
Used to show contrast or emphasis, often realized through a change in pitch within the intonation pattern.

Intonation

Candidates are expected to understand the different forms of English intonation and how they relate to grammar and the attitudes of the speaker.

There are two main intonation patterns in English:

1. Falling Pattern

2. Rising Pattern

The normal position for a change in pitch is usually on the last stressed syllable of an utterance. However, if the pitch change is placed elsewhere, it indicates a contrast or emphasis on that word.

Examples:

• He borrowed “my” newspaper (not hers).

• He “borrowed” my newspaper (he didn’t steal it).

• He borrowed my “newspaper” (not my book).

• “He” borrowed my newspaper (not someone else).

Alternative B – Multiple Choice (50 Marks)

Alternative B is a multiple-choice test of 50 questions, covering the same oral content outlined for Alternative A.

The test will assess recognition of:

• Pure vowels

• Diphthongs

• Consonants

• Consonant clusters

• Word stress

• Sentence stress

• Emphatic/contrastive stress

• Vowel and consonant contrasts through rhymes

Alternative C – Test of Orals (Nigeria Only)

This version is designed for school and private candidates in Nigeria. It is a multiple-choice test of 60 questions, focusing on a broad range of oral English components.

The areas covered include:

• Vowels – pure vowels and diphthongs

• Consonants – including consonant clusters

• Rhymes

• Word stress and syllable structure

• Emphatic stress and intonation patterns

• Phonetic symbols

Download Complete English Language Syllabus PDF

You can view the English Language WAEC Syllabus 2025 as text above or download it in PDF format for offline use. This syllabus applies to both internal and external candidates preparing for the examination.

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Note: This marks the completion of the WAEC Syllabus for English 2025. Students are advised to study each section thoroughly to be well-prepared for the examination.