Proof reading and thorough checks should be done to all examination questions before they are released for printing, says a senior education official.
Morobe provincial education adviser Keith Tangui made this statement following mistakes identified in the Grade 12 National Examination paper for geography last week.
He said exam questions are set by a high caliber of educationists and to have questions one to 10, worth 10 marks but have a wrong topography map, another set of questions 31 to 35 worth 15 marks have no topography map provided, while question 40, had a map without a scale is unacceptable.
He said to have 16 questions in the geography exam papers improperly presented raised the concern of the level of concentration by those engaged to prepare geography exam questions.
It’s a national examination and exam questions must be checked and checked again to ensure questions that require answers from the graphs, maps, diagrams or whatever they decided are provided the accurate one.
Teachers taught the students and then have remedial lessons based on what they think will appear in the national examinations so students have studied already and are prepared to do their exams.
Mr Tangu
He said to have questions with a wrong map or no scale is very frustrating to both the students and their teachers as effort for preparation was a waste as what they expected did appear but had the wrong information.
Mr Tangui said Education Minister Jimmy Uguro’s directive to have grade 12 geography students marks scaled up to cover for the mistake is good but examinations must be valid and reliable.
You cannot give blanket marks to the students and this geography exam mistakes shows those engaged are rushing or they have too many commitments and did not do thorough checks.
These people must be held responsible and disciplined so by next year, similar mistakes must not happen again in any national examinations papers.
Mr Keith Tangui