The High Court has nullified the deregistration of Sakubva Commercial College in Mutare.
This follows a cheating scandal after one of the teachers wrote a maths examination for two pupils.
Apparently, examination candidates found guilty of malpractices, such as cheating, face up to five years’ imprisonment, while any institution convicted of widespread irregularities will be compelled to bear the cost of providing alternative centres in addition to its deregistration.
Institutions where half the candidates are in breach of operating standard procedures governing examinations will be suspended and bear the cost of providing candidates with alternative centres.
These new regulations are contained in the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council Amendment Bill that was gazetted by Parliament recently.
The Bill now awaits to be tabled before the National Assembly.
While the Bill has several clauses aimed at reforming the board and improving operational efficiency, it is a clause that seeks to punish cheats that will draw the attention of many stakeholders.
“Any person who forges, alters, offers, utters or disposes of any document, purporting to show that a person has obtained a result in an examination held by the Council, knowing the same to be forged or altered shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding Level 14 or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years or to both such fine and such imprisonment,” reads Clause Eight of the Bill.
ZIMSEC defines examination malpractice as follows: “Any conduct committed by an examination candidate either intentionally or realising that there is a real possibility that such conduct may desecrate or undermine the integrity of an examination and which conduct will afford the concerned examination candidate an unwarranted advantage over other examination candidates.”
Over the past years, ZIMSEC has been grappling with examination malpractices, which include cheating, leakage of examination papers and impersonation of candidates among others.
Zwnews
