News / National
Parents demand withheld O Level results
07 Mar 2018 at 05:48hrs | Views
FOUR parents with children at St David's Bonda High School in Manicaland, have approached the High Court seeking an order compelling the Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (Zimsec) to release the 2017 Ordinary Level results, which were withdrawn over cheating allegations.
In their application - filed on Friday, the parents Mike Velah, Albert Nyamuronda, Joseph Kurai Pedzayi and Brenda Hatinahama - argued that their children required the results to enrol for A-Level.
They cited Primary and Secondary Education minister Paul Mavima and Zimsec as respondents.
The matter is yet to be set down for hearing.
The parents said the decision by Zimsec to cancel their children's results over an alleged leaked Maths Paper 1 question paper, was in violation of the country's Constitution, adding the authorities had no evidence to substantiate their claims.
"The applicants are due for enrolment to A-Level classes by March 7, 2018 and their results are a pre-requisite for their selection. The continuous holding of their results by the second respondent would mean a missed opportunity for enrolment for advanced level."
One of the affected parents, Velah, said he was informed that the results had been withheld when he went to collect them.
"I was informed that the results had been withheld for examination fraud and malpractices. I was handed over a document titled: Re: Examination malpractice dated November 8, 2017 which had details of the allegations. The allegations on the document referred are that the applicant (his daughter) with second to fourth applicants (minors) had been caught by the teachers on October 17, 2017 with questions and pre-written answers of the actual 2017 mathematics examination paper 4030/01," he said.
"It further alleges that she and second to fourth applicants had premature access to the examination questions via social media platforms and did not deny the allegations.
The results of the first to the fourth applicants were, therefore, all withheld for allegedly cheating the mathematics exam paper."
Velah said upon probing his daughter over the allegations she said she was never caught cheating in any of her examinations and was never found in possession of any examination question and – answers to the mathematics examination.
She further highlighted to him that the questions she revised with her colleagues as per the norm were past exam papers and external question papers and questions of all types they anticipated would come in any examination.
"She did not at any point admit that she had cheated in any examination and the child had no cellphone all her entire school term and also during this examination period. No cellphone was recovered from her and no questions and prewritten answers were found on her person," Velah said.
The other parents said they associated themselves with Velah's submissions.
In their application - filed on Friday, the parents Mike Velah, Albert Nyamuronda, Joseph Kurai Pedzayi and Brenda Hatinahama - argued that their children required the results to enrol for A-Level.
They cited Primary and Secondary Education minister Paul Mavima and Zimsec as respondents.
The matter is yet to be set down for hearing.
The parents said the decision by Zimsec to cancel their children's results over an alleged leaked Maths Paper 1 question paper, was in violation of the country's Constitution, adding the authorities had no evidence to substantiate their claims.
"The applicants are due for enrolment to A-Level classes by March 7, 2018 and their results are a pre-requisite for their selection. The continuous holding of their results by the second respondent would mean a missed opportunity for enrolment for advanced level."
One of the affected parents, Velah, said he was informed that the results had been withheld when he went to collect them.
"It further alleges that she and second to fourth applicants had premature access to the examination questions via social media platforms and did not deny the allegations.
The results of the first to the fourth applicants were, therefore, all withheld for allegedly cheating the mathematics exam paper."
Velah said upon probing his daughter over the allegations she said she was never caught cheating in any of her examinations and was never found in possession of any examination question and – answers to the mathematics examination.
She further highlighted to him that the questions she revised with her colleagues as per the norm were past exam papers and external question papers and questions of all types they anticipated would come in any examination.
"She did not at any point admit that she had cheated in any examination and the child had no cellphone all her entire school term and also during this examination period. No cellphone was recovered from her and no questions and prewritten answers were found on her person," Velah said.
The other parents said they associated themselves with Velah's submissions.
Source - newsday
