ZimEye.org
By Thembani Gasela
29 April 2010
Harare (ZimEye) – Zimbabwe schools produced the worst results in the education history of the country with the November 2009 national percentage pass rate for Ordinary Level examinations standing at 19 percent.
David Coltart, Education Minister revealed the Grade Seven results were equally pathetic having recorded 20 percent – the worst in the past decade.
He said academic results in rural schools were a cause for concern, as some institutions had a zero percentage pass rate.
Coltart said there was a grave danger that the nation will suffer from a lost generation if the education crisis is not taken seriously.
Teachers associations attribute the poor results to lack of educators and low morale due to poor remuneration. Teachers are earning US$150 per month against a poverty Datum Line of US$500.
Coltart said: “Urgent steps need to be taken to rectify some of the obvious problems, such as the scarcity of teaching and learning material, inadequacy of physical infrastructure and the no longer attractive working conditions for teachers.â€
However, for Advanced Level exams, the figure increased to 76,88 percent, from 67 percent in 2008.
Last year, examination fees deterred candidates from sitting for examinations. They were asked to pay US$10 and US$20 per “O†and “A†Level paper respectively.
The Zimbabwe Teachers Association (Zimta) has said over 45 000 teachers have quit jobs in the past 10 years due to an economic meltdown.