For the time being, students registered for the School Certificate (SC) and Higher School Certificate (HSC) examinations are preparing for the Cambridge tests. Indeed, the serious stuff is coming for the students of grades 11 and 13. They will have only two months to complete their syllabus and revisions, as the tests start on April 11.
According to a press release from the Mauritius Examination Syndicate (MES), students in the technical stream will already have their practical sessions at the end of March. The release also states that the written tests will begin on April 11. The French, Business Studies, Hinduism and Sanskrit tests will kick off the exams, which will end on June 10 with the biology, accounting and German tests.
Oral tests in English maintained
In addition, unlike last year, the Oral English exam for students in grade 11 is maintained. This is due to the fact that the Covid-19 situation seems to be improving with the decrease of positive cases and a clear decrease of patients in our hospitals.
Colleges have until this Monday, January 24, to report their students’ choices to MES, which will then forward them to Cambridge. In the event that the exemption is granted, the candidate will be evaluated on his or her average for the attribution of a grade in the concerned test.
Please note that students who will be taking the SC and HSC exams will receive their final time table shortly.
The postponement of the exams claimed
While the SC and HSC exams are scheduled for next April, the Federation of Private Colleges and the Diocesan Catholic Education Service (SeDEC) are calling for a postponement of the exams. Catholic college rectors met on Thursday, January 20 to discuss the issue. According to the fallout from this meeting, many students were unable to take the online courses due to lack of computer tools and connectivity. Jimmy Harmon, president of SeDEC, says that these students need to be in the classroom to be better supervised.
“Some have not logged on since the start of the school year in January 2022 and teachers fear a high percentage of dropouts, especially among G9 and G9+ students. In the schools governed by SeDEC, principals are concerned that there will be drop-outs,” said the SeDEC president.
The rectors believe that major national and international exams should be postponed, as the majority of students say they are not ready for April 2022. Attendance rates for online courses in Grades 10 to 13 range from 25% to 95%, depending on the college, they say.
As for the Federation of Private Colleges, while its members welcome the decision of the Minister of Education and the authorities to resume face-to-face classes on February 2, they would like to see the exams postponed. According to them, with the disruption of the school calendar due to the Covid-19 pandemic, students have not had time to prepare their curriculum properly. Especially with the lack of face-to-face classes and hands-on instruction.
Responding to the unionists and rectors of the Catholic colleges regarding the request to postpone the NCE, SC and HSC exams, Leela Devi Dookhun-Luchoomun explained that a technical committee is currently looking into the matter. “A report will be submitted to the ministry on Tuesday, January 25, and by then a decision will be made.”
