- 60 days are a critical measure
- Missed finals means all grades repeating
SESUPO RANTSIMAKO
The State of Emergency means thousands of pupils of primary schools and students of secondary schools across the country may not sit for their final examinations this year, The Botswana Gazette has learnt. “It has to be noted that we prepare the final examinations before even the school calendar starts,” a spokesperson of the Botswana Examinations Council, Fingile Makgalemele, said in an interview.
“This therefore raises doubts about this year’s final exams. The State of Emergency will end in October, which is the time for final examinations. With schools closed for six months, progress with the curriculum will be seriously affected for both regular and extension students. We are only waiting for formal communication from the Ministry of Education about the way forward.”
The Minister of Basic Education, Fidelis Molao, also recognises this fluid state of affairs and speaks of “credible examinations” becoming a difficult prospect if schools remain closed for more than 60 days. “It has to be noted that the main issue is coronavirus,” Molao said in an interview. “If we remain closed for upwards of 60 days, we will have lost the whole year, making it impractical to run credible examinations. This raises a serious difficulty of all grades having to repeat next year.”