Use the exam results delay to fight cheats
The delay in releasing this year’s Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination results has come as a big surprise. As the government has in recent years relentlessly tackled exam cheating, the results have always been unveiled in time.
This eased anxiety among candidates as they enjoyed their Christmas and New Year festivities already having known how they performed in the exams. The tests are important as they determine who will go up the academic ladder and those who will pursue skills training in various fields.
Genuine examination results guide the students into careers they are able to pursue. Fake results that take candidates into courses beyond their abilities have often led to dropouts even at university and in tertiary colleges.
While the Education ministry has been lauded for fighting cheating in national exams, the vice appears to be rearing its ugly head again. It is, indeed, one of the reasons why the release of this year’s exam results has been put on hold until next year, breaking the trend where candidates would know how they performed before the year ends.
A huge number of candidates, an analysis to weed out examination cheats, and a cautious move to avoid mix-ups are some of the reasons why this year’s candidates will wait longer for their results.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba says the 965,501 candidates who sat the 2024 KCSE exam will receive their results in early January, more than three weeks since the marking was concluded.
The delay is a marked departure from recent practice. The Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) has since 2016 been releasing results just a few days after examiners leave the marking centres. The credibility of exams is crucial, as they enable the potential abilities of the candidates to be assessed, identified and nurtured.
