By John Bosco Tugume
The delayed National examinations for 2020-2021 candidates will kick off with a briefing of O’level candidates on Friday, February 26, 2021. This is according to the examination timetable released by the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) this morning.
The learners at this level will then start their examinations on March 1, 2021, with the physics practical paper. There are 333,775 candidates for the Uganda Certificate of Education -UCE.
The primary seven candidates totalling 749, 811 will be briefed on March 26, and start their examinations with the Mathematics Paper on March 30, 2021, and the Social Studies paper in the afternoon. The next day, learners will sit for the Integrated science paper and end with English on March 31, 2021.
The examination cycle will end with the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education whose briefing is scheduled to take place on April 9, 2021. The up to 98,379 learners in this category, will start their examinations on April 12, 2021, with the European history paper. According to the time table, the cycle officially ends on May 3, 2021, with Imaginative composition in colour.
At least 1,181,965 candidates are going to sit for their final exams. The candidates were supposed to sit for the exams at the end of 2020. However, their studies were disrupted by the closure of schools at the beginning of the year, following an outbreak of coronavirus disease.
Dan Odongo, the UNEB Executive Secretary says that despite the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on both the schools and the learners, the board will not compromise on any processes and quality of the exams.
He notes that the board is aware that the education ministry, together with schools, has been able to facilitate the candidates with study materials in print form and online studies. And, as such, the setting and marking of the exams will be based on the usual criteria to avoid compromising standards of results given at both local and international level.
Odongo also appealed to Schools to allow learners with fees balances to sit for their final examinations, putting into consideration the challenges that parents are enduring, as a result of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Many have lost jobs and endured salary cuts, a development that affects their ability to clear school dues, on time.
