HARARE – Schools have been ordered to enforce a cap on the number of subjects candidates can sit at both Ordinary and Advanced Level to ease pressure on learners, the ministry of primary and secondary education said on Sunday.
O’ Level candidates will now be limited to a maximum of nine subjects, while A’ Level candidates will be restricted to three.
The deadline for the registration of candidates for the ZIMSEC final examinations in November is March 27.
The ministry has directed schools that registered candidates for subjects above the new limits to refund the affected pupils.
Tawungana Ndoro, the ministry’s director of communications and advocacy, said: “The policy on capping the number of subjects that one can register for at both O’ and A’ Level is now in force.”
Authorities say they have seen a surge in students registering for an unusually high number of subjects, which they insist serves no purpose, as university entry requirements are typically based on passes in three A’ Level subjects.
In November last year, a student from Pamushana High School in Masvingo sat for 12 A’ Level subjects and scored 56 points.
It later emerged that the school had to seek special permission from ZIMSEC for him to sit some of the exams after other students had taken the tests due to scheduling clashes.
Ndoro said the new measures will “ensure depth of learning, quality of instruction and the integrity of learner outcomes,” following some suggestions that examinations had become too easy.
Some parents, however, believe allowing their children to take more than the mandatory subjects gives them an advantage when applying for university places.
The presidency has also weighed in on the debate, with President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s spokesman George Charamba labelling the practice of taking on extra subjects as “illusory grandeur.”
“Anything beyond the 15 points in three subjects at A’ Level is superfluous — a vanity flight,” Charamba said.
“No attention is given to the needless pressure and stress on the misguided child, the financial strain on parents, or the profligate misuse of time — all without a clear career path.” – ZimLive