Govt moves to curb low pass rates

THE Primary and Secondary Education ministry has embarked on a nationwide joint monitoring exercise that is set to improve pass rates in underperforming schools.

In a statement on Monday, the ministry’s spokesperson Taungana Ndoro said improving pass rates in underperforming primary and secondary schools in the country required a multifaceted approach that addressed various aspects of the education system.

“We need to continue to invest in teacher training and professional development programmes to enhance the quality of teaching as well as provide on-going support for teachers, such as mentoring and coaching, to improve their instructional skills and classroom management techniques,” Ndoro said.

“As a ministry, we envisage enhancing our curriculum to ensure it is continuously relevant, engaging and aligned with educational goals. This is why we incorporate practical and hands-on learning experiences to make education more interactive and applicable to real-life situations.”

He added that the government would continue to allocate adequate resources to schools to create a conducive learning environment.

“With the ongoing recruitment of teachers, the government is aiming to reduce class sizes to ensure that teachers can provide individual attention to pupils and lower teacher-pupil ratios to allow for more personalised instruction that will help to address the diverse needs of pupils,” Ndoro said.

According to the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council, the national O’ Level pass rate for 2023 was 29,41%.

Some schools had zero percent pass rate in the November 2023 examinations.