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FORM V RESULTS BEST OVERALL IN 5 YEARS

09/02/2021 01:13:00 BY NTOMBI MHLONGO AND SITHEMBILE HLATSHWAYO

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MBABANE - Talk about shining against all odds!

Despite causing havoc all over the world, COVID-19 failed to stop the Form V Class of 2020 from excelling in the examination.

The pupils achieved the best overall results in five years.

Against all the odds posed by the coronavirus pandemic last year, the Form V examination, known as the Eswatini General Certificate in Secondary Education (EGCSE) and Prevocational (PREVOC) results overall pass rate stands at an incredible 92.91 per cent.

This shows an increase of 0.28 per cent when compared with the 2019 overall pass rate of 92.63 per cent.

Due to COVID-19 and as a means of containing its spread, government announced the closure of schools on March 17, 2020 which affected the completing classes.

As a result, teaching had to be done through radio, television and print media.

Regulations

Government then reopened schools on July 16, 2020 to allow completing classes to return for face-to-face teaching and learning under strict COVID-19 regulations.

To make up for lost time and ensure that pupils completed their projects and coursework, government, in consultation with the Cambridge Assessment, postponed the EGCSE examinations from September to late October 2020.

When the examinations were eventually written, schools had to adhere to the strict regulations to ensure that pupils and teachers alike were safe.

The results were released by the Minister of Education and Training, Lady Mabuza, at a press conference yesterday.

Worth noting is that this is the first time in years that Form V results are released earlier than those of Junior Certificate (JC).

The minister, through records from the Examinations Council of Eswatini (ECESWA), revealed that there were 17 subjects examined in 2020 and that the candidature decreased by 0.35 per cent as it stood at 19 931 while in 2019 it was 20 002.

The records reflect that candidates who credited their subjects in 2020 increased by 0.72 per cent.

Breaking down the figures of the candidature, Minister Mabuza revealed that there were 9 493 males (47.62 per cent) and 10 438 females (53.37 per cent) in 2020.

In 2020, there were 16 669 fulltime candidates who sat for the examination which shows an increase of 1 386 (9.07 per cent) when compared with 2019 where the figure stood at 15 283.

The number of private candidates in 2020 was 3 262 with 1 281 being males (39.27 per cent) while 1 981 (60.73 per cent) were females.

Regarding the performance of the pupils, the minister revealed that the number of candidates who passed and scored A* to G in four or more subjects including English was 90.89 per cent.

This, therefore, means that the performance of candidates had an increase of 0.77 per cent when compared with the 2019 pass rate where it stood at 91.66 per cent.

The minister also revealed that 2 954 (17.49 per cent) candidates passed with A* to C in five or more subjects including English Language.

In 2019, 2 915 (16.97 per cent) passed with the same score in five or more subjects including English Language.

These candidates, by virtue of their achievement, qualify for entry at the University of Eswatini. In summary, the 2020 candidates who scored A* to C in five or more subjects including English Language showed an increase of 0.52 per cent when compared with 2019.

The records of the 2020 examinations reflect that the pass rate for the performance of candidates is the second highest since 2011.

Meanwhile, the minister also presented the results for the prevocational education (PREVOC) examination where she stated that there were 16 schools which registered candidates as was the case in 2019.

The 2020 candidature shows a decrease of 0.37 per cent compared with the one for 2019.

In 2020, 268 candidates sat for the examination which shows a decrease from 269 in 2019.

The 2020 pass rate stands at 92.71 per cent which is a decrease of 0.94 per cent from the 2019 one which was 93.65 per cent.

In 2020, the pass rate of candidates who got C or better was 53.26 per cent compared to 2019 where it stood at 58.58 per cent. This shows a decrease of 5.32 per cent.

When presenting the results, the minister said the public was aware that the education sector, like many others, was seriously affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Lessons

She commended some schools and volunteer teachers’ groups which conducted lessons through various forms of social media platforms such as Google classrooms for their pupils to maximise the benefits of effective teaching and learning.

Mabuza thanked teachers who she said were called at short notice to prepare lessons and teach in the various platforms including television, radio and print media.

“I would also like to thank the management of these institutions for their cooperation in using these platforms for teaching. In addition, I would like to appreciate all the heads of schools and teachers for their efforts when schools opened in July 2020. These results are a product of your good work,” she said.

The minister also thanked the candidates, saying they all worked hard under difficult circumstances and that their dedication to their schoolwork resulted in the results they have achieved.

“Parents also did a commendable job supporting their children and ensuring that they studied at home. I would also like to appreciate the work done by the teachers who marked the examination scripts in 2020. The sacrifice you made to mark the examinations under the COVID-19 threat is appreciated. Thank you for being ‘soldiers of education’ at a time that was most challenging to everyone,” she emphasised.

Meanwhile, unlike in previous years, this time around the minister did not share information on the list of schools with a poor credit performance.

There was also no mention of schools whose results were withheld.