Tanzania Form Four results: Over 80% failed in maths

                                                    This is Butogwa Shija, the top overall student in the 2015 national O-Level exams.

Over 80 per cent of candidates who sat for last year’s Form Four national examinations failed in mathematics, according to the results announced in Dar es Salaam yesterday by the National Examinations Council of Tanzania (NECTA).

 

Kiswahili scored best as a subject with a 77.63 per cent pass rate. The overall Form Four pass rate last year was 67.53 per cent, down by almost 2 per cent from 69.76 per cent in 2014, according to NECTA executive secretary Dr Charles Msonde.

 

He said the 2015 results were graded under the Divisions system restored by education minister Prof Joyce Ndalichako after education stakeholders strongly opposed the Grade Points Average (GPA) system.

 

A total of 9,816 (2.77 per cent) candidates scored Division One while 31,986 (9.01 percent) candidates managed Division Two. Another 48,127 (13.56 percent) candidates were placed in the Division Three category while 51,067 (42.57 percent) candidates scored Division Four, according to the results.

 

However, a whopping 113, 489 (32.09 percent) candidates failed the exams with a Division Zero score, Msonde confirmed. Of the total 433,633 candidates who sat for the exams, 229,144 were girls and 219,238 boys.

 

After Kiswahili, candidates also passed the 50 per cent pass mark in the subjects of Chemistry (60.11 percent), English (56.19 percent), Biology (53.74 percent), and Civics (50.56 percent). 

 

For Geography the average score rate was 48.70 percent, History (47.60 percent), Physics (44.30 percent), Book Keeping (43.48 percent) and Commerce (36.08 percent), with Basic Mathematics at the tail with a dismal score of 16.76 percent.

 

Remarked Dr Msonde: “Basic Mathematics is one subject that still troubles a lot of students in the country. Joint efforts are needed to overcome this.”

 

The NECTA executive secretary said the results of 87 candidates had been nullified after they were found to have cheated, while another 98 candidates who couldn’t sit for the exams last year due to health problems will be allowed to do so this year.

 

The same goes for 23 candidates who couldn’t do some subject exams, also due to health problems, he said.

 

Last year’s top-scoring Form Four candidate was Butogwa Shija from Canossa Secondary School (Dar es Salaam), followed by Congcong Wang (Feza Girls Secondary School - Dar es Salaam) and Innocent Lawrence (Feza Boys Secondary School - Dar es Salaam). Completing the top five were Dominick Aidano (Msolwa Secondary School -Morogoro) and Sang’udi E. Sang’udi (Ilboru - Arusha).

 

Others in the top ten were Asteria Chilambo, Belinda Magere (both from Canossa Secondary School - Dar es Salaam), Humfrey Kimanya (Msolwa Secondary School - (Morogoro), Bright Mwang’onda and Erick Mwang’ingo (both from Marian Boys Secondary School – Coast region).

 

The top ten girls were Butogwa Shija (Canossa - Dar es Salaam), Congcong Wang (Feza Girls - Dar es Salaam), Asteria Chilambo (Canossa - Dar es Salaam), Belinda Magere (Canossa - Dar es Salaam), and Lilian Kiwone (St Francis - Mbeya).

 

Others were Maynas Duduye (St Francis - Mbeya), Julieth Mbalilaki (Baobab – Coast region), Valileth Lazaro (Kilakala - Morogoro), Nancy Shao (Canossa - Dar es Salaam), and Emmy Shemdangiwa (St. Mary’s Mazinde Juu - Tanga).

 

Top ten boys were Innocent Lawrence (Feza Boys - Dar es Salaam), Dominick Aidano (Msolwa - Morogoro), Sang’udi E. Sang’udi (Ilboru - Arusha), Humfrey Kimanya (Msolwa - Morogoro), Bright Mwang’onda, Erick Mwang’ingo, and Mohamed Kigume (all from Marian Boys – Coast region).

 

Others are David Joseph (Ilboru - Arusha), Daniel Mabimbi (Alliance Boys - Mwanza), and William Kihanza (Mzumbe - Morogoro).

 

The top ten schools across the country were Kaizirege (Kagera region), Alliance Girls (Mwanza), St. Francis Girls (Mbeya), Alliance Boys (Mwanza), Canossa (Dar es Salaam), Marian Boys (Coast region), Alliance Rock Army (Mwanza), Feza Girls (Dar es Salaam), Feza Boys (Dar es Salaam) and Uru Seminary (Kilimanjaro).

 

The ten worst-performing schools countrywide were Pande Secondary School (Lindi), Igawa (Morogoro), Korona (Arusha), Sofi (Morogoro), Kurui (Coast region), Patema (Tanga), Saviak (Dar es Salaam), Gubali (Dodoma), Kichangani (Morogoro), and Malinyi (Morogoro).

 

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN