MBABANE – Educators have expressed uncertainty over the expected outcome of the first-ever Competency-Based Education (CBE) Grade VII examination results.
They further expressed eagerness to see how the Examinations Council of Eswatini (ECESWA) will present and interpret the results.
Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) Secretary General Lot Vilakati said educators were keen to establish whether the results would be presented using the former outcomes-based education (OBE) framework or the new CBE assessment model. “This is because it is still not clear how exactly the results will be presented. It is tricky, because past OBE results were standardised, and we are hoping government will clarify which framework was ultimately used to determine passes and failures,” said Vilakati.
He said there had initially been an understanding that all pupils would automatically proceed to Form I, but a recent circular issued by the Ministry of Education and Training indicated that Grade VII learners who fail would be required to repeat the grade.
“The challenge we have is that the pupils who will fail this year are learners who have technically never failed since they entered primary school in Grade I, because CBE warrants automatic promotion,” he said.
Vilakati said it was difficult to expect a learner to repeat Grade VII when they had never previously been retained at any grade.
“It is not clear which programme ECESWA will use to grade success and failure. If CBE is applied fully, then we do not expect failures, while OBE is the system that traditionally records failures,” he said. He said the situation remained a ‘wait-and-see’ for teachers and parents alike. Eswatini Principals Association (EPA) President Armstrong Dlamini echoed near similar sentiments, saying principals were eagerly awaiting the release of the results, as they represented the first major assessment under the CBE system.
“We are uncertain about the outcome, but we are hopeful that pupils will pass as usual, because teachers did their best throughout the year,” he said.
Dlamini said while success was expected, the possibility of failures could not be ruled out.
“In every examination there are failures, regardless of the system used. We will only know once the results are released,” he said.
He noted that the recent government circular would also influence outcomes, as it stipulates that pupils graded ‘Insufficient’ would be required to repeat the grade. “This is meant to give learners a second chance to address gaps before progressing further,” said Dlamini.
ECESWA announced that the 2025 Grade VII results will be released today, following approval by the ECESWA Board yesterday afternoon.
CBE is an educational approach that focuses on learning outcomes and demonstrated skills rather than content coverage or time spent in class.
*…
More fails expected this year – SNAT
MBABANE – The Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) has warned that primary school fails rates could worsen this year.
Secretary General Lot Vilakati said this was because the same cohort of learners had been exposed to CBE since Grade I, without the benefit of the OBE framework.
“This is a new syllabus that we do not yet have sufficient experience with, and we are waiting for the results to understand how the ministry will present them,” said Vilakati.
In 2024, Grade VII fails stood at 2 716, compared to 2 295 in 2023.
Under the traditional EPC system, 1 034 candidates attained Merit passes in 2024, compared to 830 in 2023.
First Class passes increased from 3 282 in 2023 to 3 547 in 2024, while Second Class passes rose from 13 747 to 15 084. Third Class passes also increased from 6 257 to 7 088.
Despite this, rural schools dominated the list of institutions that recorded 100 per cent pass rates.
Out of more than 260 schools that achieved full pass rates, the majority were rural-based, while only a few urban schools achieved similar results.
Rural schools that recorded 100 per cent pass rates included Nginamadvolo, Ekufikeni, Luhhuhumeni, Ebulandzeni, Enkonjaneni, Hlabazonke, Elubhaceni, Emvembili, Mgululu, Mbava and Nsalitje No.2 Primary Schools.
Urban schools such as Mater Dolorosa and Manzini Central Primary recorded slightly below 100 per cent, with pass rates of 97 and 98 per cent respectively.
*Full article available in our publication
Leave a comment