Thursday , 28 March 2024
enfrit
A best result than in 2008 would have been expected for the BEPC exam, following the exceptionally high CEPE exam success rate. Now that the subject controversy is over, pupils' exam success might just not yet make the top headline.

Education: no clearing sales for the BEPC exam

 

 

 

The national education ministry announced a good but far from exceptional BEPC success rate improvement. In Antananarivo, 54% of the candidates succeeded compared to 2008’s 49%. In Fianarantsoa, the average was short from being reached. Nobody can say that the free courses provided by the TGV erased the ominous effects of a school year disrupted by the political crisis. 

The national education ministry’s boast concerns the celerity of results publication. In Antananarivo, results have been published eight days after the beginning of the tests and only four days after the last examination day. What are the secrets? Just the will to do fast and the use of data processing. 

As soon as on Tuesday, copies of the first two previous days’ tests have been corrected. The genuine challenge was the processing of candidates marks. Thanks to computers, the calculation of averages is automated. 

A  BEPC success rate of about 50% has been being more or less the national average since about twenty years. The ministry did as usual lower the required success average to 9/20. In Antananarivo, the 2009 success rate would have been only 40%, if a10/20 average had been required. 

In the end, the BEPC has not been cleared off to stand the propaganda in a good stead, as it was suspected by the sceptical opinion. The subject choice for the “malagasy” examination has been feeding the gossips. Candidates have been asked to write about the transitional regime’s efforts to develop the country. The controversy pushed the national education ministry to bring some not always convincing explanations. 

The MAP had also been the subject of an examination, so there has been a “precedent”. Development is one of the themes susceptible to make the subject of a BEPC examination. The politically correct is not respected for so much. The correcting teachers got a briefing on how to correct this rather particular examination. The candidate has not been judged on his opinions but on his capacity to argue.