News / National
No CALA, no results for A and O-level learners
07 Aug 2024 at 14:07hrs | Views
Advanced and Ordinary Level learners in Zimbabwe who do not have a Continuous Assessment Learning Area (CALA) mark will not receive their results, even if they have completed the theoretical part of the Zimsec examinations. Zimsec board chairperson, Professor Paul Mapfumo, emphasized this during a press conference in Harare, stating that candidates must meet their CALA requirements to access their results.
In February, the government updated the education curriculum, renaming CALA as school-based projects and focusing on practical assessments at schools. At the infant level, learning areas under CALA were reduced from eleven to six, and this reduction was applied to Grades 3 to 7 as well. At the secondary school level, the core and compulsory learning areas were reduced from seven to five.
Professor Mapfumo announced that A and O level examination results are now available online via the Zimsec portal. Printed results can be collected by heads of examination centers from Zimsec regional offices.
For the June 2024 O level results, 32,026 candidates registered, with 919 school candidates and 31,107 private candidates. Out of these, 30,088 candidates sat for one to seven subjects, compared to 21,683 candidates in June 2023. This marks an increase of 8,405 candidates (38.76%). There was also a significant increase in candidates with special needs, from 14 to 38, a 157% rise.
However, 1,938 registered candidates did not sit for the exams. Only 383 candidates (1.27% of the total) sat for five or more subjects, and of these, 17 candidates passed with a Grade C or better, resulting in a pass rate of 4.44%. This is an improvement from the previous year, where only 0.46% passed with Grade C or better.
For A level, 144 candidates registered, with 125 being private candidates and 19 school candidates. The number of candidates who sat for the exams decreased from 256 in 2023 to 120 in 2024, a 53% decrease. Of those who sat, 52 wrote two or more subjects, and 38 obtained Grade E or better, yielding a 31.67% pass rate. This is a significant drop from the previous year's pass rate of 75.89%.
Among the school candidates, 18 sat for the exams, with 15 writing two or more subjects and 13 obtaining Grade E or better, resulting in a 72.23% pass rate. For private candidates, 102 sat for the exams, with 37 writing two or more subjects and 25 obtaining Grade E or better, resulting in a 24.51% pass rate.
In February, the government updated the education curriculum, renaming CALA as school-based projects and focusing on practical assessments at schools. At the infant level, learning areas under CALA were reduced from eleven to six, and this reduction was applied to Grades 3 to 7 as well. At the secondary school level, the core and compulsory learning areas were reduced from seven to five.
Professor Mapfumo announced that A and O level examination results are now available online via the Zimsec portal. Printed results can be collected by heads of examination centers from Zimsec regional offices.
However, 1,938 registered candidates did not sit for the exams. Only 383 candidates (1.27% of the total) sat for five or more subjects, and of these, 17 candidates passed with a Grade C or better, resulting in a pass rate of 4.44%. This is an improvement from the previous year, where only 0.46% passed with Grade C or better.
For A level, 144 candidates registered, with 125 being private candidates and 19 school candidates. The number of candidates who sat for the exams decreased from 256 in 2023 to 120 in 2024, a 53% decrease. Of those who sat, 52 wrote two or more subjects, and 38 obtained Grade E or better, yielding a 31.67% pass rate. This is a significant drop from the previous year's pass rate of 75.89%.
Among the school candidates, 18 sat for the exams, with 15 writing two or more subjects and 13 obtaining Grade E or better, resulting in a 72.23% pass rate. For private candidates, 102 sat for the exams, with 37 writing two or more subjects and 25 obtaining Grade E or better, resulting in a 24.51% pass rate.
Source - The Chronicle
