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This Monday, the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) published the November 2020 ZIMSEC Ordinary Level Examination results.

Professor Eddie Mwenje, Chairman of the ZIMSEC Board, stated at a press conference on Monday morning that Heads of Examination Centres will be able to collect results for their respective schools/centres from the ZIMSEC Regional Offices beginning today, 3 May 2021.

In total, 264 099 candidates took the November 2020 Ordinary Level examination, compared to 296 464 candidates who took the same exams in 2019.

There was a fall in candidature of 32 365, resulting in an 11 percent decrease in percentage.

In 2020, a total of 184 249 candidates wrote 5 or more subjects, and 45 644 passed 5 or more subjects with a grade C or better, for a 24.8 percent overall pass rate.

In 2019, 200 062 students took 5 or more subjects, and 63 215 earned a grade of C or higher in 5 or more subjects. This equated to a pass rate of 31.6 percent.

According to the data, the 2020 pass rate decreased by 6.8 percent from the previous year. However, historical data shows that a pass rate of 22.4 percent was recorded in 2014, while a pass rate of 28.7 percent was recorded in 2017.

Professor Mwenje attributed the low pass rate to the disturbance of the 2020 school calendar caused by COVID-19-induced lockdowns. He stated:

It is important for all the stakeholders of examinations to note that the 2020 school calendar was disrupted and that candidates wrote the examinations under lockdown in 2021. We are grateful to Government for allowing the examinations to go on.

Amidst the strict observance of the WHO suggested COVID 19 precautions to mitigate against the spread of the novel virus, examinations were written and marked without any major incidents or notable setbacks.

The examinations went on exceptionally well without major incidence. This was enabled by the immense support ZIMSEC received from the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education and the Ministry of Health and Child Care.