KCPE examination had no leaks or cancellations

 

Unlike in past years, this year’s examination was not marred by leaks or cancellations.

While releasing the results Thursday, Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i said during the release of last year’s KCPE examination results, he had promised Kenyans he would not apologise again over exam leaks.

“I wish to categorically state there was no examination leakage in the 2016 KCPE examinations,” Dr Matiang’i said confidently.

He said various security measures were put in place during the administration and management of the examination to help stamp out cheating.

Matiang’i revealed all the attempted cases of examination malpractices were dealt with before they could happen, and as a result there was no cancellation of results of any candidate due to cheating.

“I wish to report that all the attempted cases of examination malpractices, totalling to only 21, were detected and dealt with appropriately before they could happen,” he said.

Multiple centres

But the CS noted that the ministry was aware of some private schools that operate multiple examination centres in one school, with the aim of engaging in unethical practices meant to enable them record favourable rankings in national examinations.

“That nonsense has got to end and its ending now, 2016,” he said.

Matiang’i explained such schools register weaker pupils at sister “satellite” examination centres to avoid bringing down the mean scores of their main “marketing” schools.

He said the ministry had discovered that a majority of such schools that offloaded “weaker” pupils usually had a small candidature of between 20 and 30 of their best candidates. He warned that the ministry had resolved to stamp out this unethical practice once and for all, adding that he had instructed the Kenya National Examination Council to ensure that no two examination centres will be registered in the same school.

“Next year we are going to have a one entity one centre approach. If you bring those kinds of business (to register two centres in one school) we deregister you, period,” he said.

“This is a ridiculous examination malpractice since the proprietors of these schools are clearly using innocent pupils in an unscrupulous marketing exercise of their businesses,” he added.