Friday, March 29, 2024

ZANEC happy with Grade 7 and 9 results but calls for review of Automatic Progression Policy

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The Zambia National Education Coalition (ZANEC) has expressed delight at the grade 7 and 9 examination results but has called for a review of the Automatic Progression Policy in its current form. ZANEC said the December 2018 report by OECD’s Program for International Student Assessment showed that only 5% of our Grade 7 learners demonstrate minimum proficiency in literacy. This means that by having the Automatic Progression Policy,
we are allowing children in Grade 7 who cannot read and write to progress to Grade 8.

Below is the Full Press statement

The Zambia National Education Coalition (ZANEC) is happy that the Grades 7 and 9 examination results are out as announced by the Minister of General Education Honourable Dr.Dennis Wanchinga MP in a joint statement on the release of the 2020 Internal Examination Results.

The Ministry of General Education (MoGE) should also be commended for sustaining learning for examination classes in 2020 amidst the COVID 19 pandemic. The Ministry showed all of us how much education means to our country even during the COVID 19 pandemic. We are aware of the education crisis that is looming in some neighboring countries that decided to keep their schools closed after recording COVID 19 cases. The statistics also show that there was an improvement in the number of Grade 9 candidates that passed the examinations in 2020, which is good. For instance, we are glad that 53.09% of the Grade 9 candidates that sat for the examinations passed, representing an increase of 7 percentage points in performance when
compared to the pass rate of 46.14 percent recorded in the 2019 examination.

We are also aware that because of the current Automatic Progression Policy, the 2020 Grade 7 national progression rate was pegged at 100 percent as was the case in 2019. This means that all the 403, 445 candidates who sat the 2020 Grade 7 Composite Examination will progress to grade 8.

However, although ZANEC’s interest is to have all children of school going age enrolled in our schools, the Automatic Progression Policy in current form needs to be re-examined and changed. For instance, the December 2018 report by OECD’s Program for International Student Assessment showed that only 5% of our Grade 7 learners demonstrate minimum proficiency in literacy. This means that by having the Automatic Progression Policy,
we are allowing children in Grade 7 who cannot read and write to progress to Grade 8.

ZANEC would like to advise the Ministry of General Education to consider changing this Policy so that such children can either repeat or progress through the vocational career path.

Finally, we are grateful that the Ministry has given ample time to parents and guardians to prepare for their Grades 8 and 10 children by setting the opening of schools on 1 st March 2021.This is important especially that ZANEC is concerned that most parents of late have neglected
their obligation to pay school fees, thereby making the running of schools amidst the COVID 19 pandemic very difficult by school managements.

Issued by
George Hamusunga
Executive Director

10 COMMENTS

  1. This is vital news and yet there are no comments. Yet on political propaganda articles from upnd you get 100 comments. This shows you the priority of most upnd members. They just want to taste state house.

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  2. In fact, Exams must start as low as at Grade Four (4). learners progress must be on merit. Identification of talent should commence at that early level. There should be the Technical and Academic routes. Like skills necessity must start early in children’s lives. What is the purpose of having exams which everyone passes? It is a must that the Education authorities raise the Bar! Otherwise, such exams are a shame and a waste of National Resources!

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  3. It’s called “no child left behind” in the US. It’s one of the millennium goals which Zambia is signatory to. What you are experiencing in Zambia isn’t unique to you alone and with supports ( education assistants, special education specialists and therapists etc) the programme can be easier for all.

  4. The education system is going to need a “root and branch” change otherwise the whole thing will fail. You will have to look at how devdped countries are doing it.

  5. These useless organisations how can you be happy with something then aske for a review of the current method …that means the system is a failure

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