The Minister of Primary and Secondary Education has said it is too early to know whether students will be able to write ZIMSEC examinations in November. He blamed this uncertainty on the fact that Covid-19 cases which are on the rise might not have been contained by then. There has been a spike in local coronavirus cases which now stand at more than 1 000 and are accompanied by 20 deaths so far.
This spike has forced authorities to postpone the reopening of schools. Students last attended school back in March and a lot of schools had not yet completed their curriculums. Normally students must complete their curriculums before they can sit for public examinations.
The issue of writing exams is so far not known; it depends on COVID-19 cases. As you are aware cases of the COVID-19 Pandemic are spiking.
Minister Mathema speaking to the ZBC
Subdued mood after the June exams push
This subdued mood is in contrast to the government’s push for June examinations to take place and until a few weeks ago for schools to reopen. The government lobbied hard for June exams to take place despite protests from various stakeholders including parents and teachers. The exams were marred by claims that the government had to engage villagers to invigilate after some teachers refused to participate. The government had also pushed for schools to reopen at the end of this month.
Now with the spike in cases, there is talk of a full-blown lockdown and uncertainty over when schools will reopen.
