HARARE
–
Schools
have
been
ordered
to
enforce
a
cap
on
the
number
of
subjects
candidates
can
sit
at
both
Ordinary
and
Advanced
Level
to
ease
pressure
on
learners,
the
ministry
of
primary
and
secondary
education
said
on
Sunday.
O’
Level
candidates
will
now
be
limited
to
a
maximum
of
nine
subjects,
while
A’
Level
candidates
will
be
restricted
to
three.
The
deadline
for
the
registration
of
candidates
for
the
ZIMSEC
final
examinations
in
November
is
March
27.
The
ministry
has
directed
schools
that
registered
candidates
for
subjects
above
the
new
limits
to
refund
the
affected
pupils.
Tawungana
Ndoro,
the
ministry’s
director
of
communications
and
advocacy,
said:
“The
policy
on
capping
the
number
of
subjects
that
one
can
register
for
at
both
O’
and
A’
Level
is
now
in
force.”
Authorities
say
they
have
seen
a
surge
in
students
registering
for
an
unusually
high
number
of
subjects,
which
they
insist
serves
no
purpose,
as
university
entry
requirements
are
typically
based
on
passes
in
three
A’
Level
subjects.
In
November
last
year,
a
student
from
Pamushana
High
School
in
Masvingo
sat
for
12
A’
Level
subjects
and
scored
56
points.
It
later
emerged
that
the
school
had
to
seek
special
permission
from
ZIMSEC
for
him
to
sit
some
of
the
exams
after
other
students
had
taken
the
tests
due
to
scheduling
clashes.
Ndoro
said
the
new
measures
will
“ensure
depth
of
learning,
quality
of
instruction
and
the
integrity
of
learner
outcomes,”
following
some
suggestions
that
examinations
had
become
too
easy.
Some
parents,
however,
believe
allowing
their
children
to
take
more
than
the
mandatory
subjects
gives
them
an
advantage
when
applying
for
university
places.
The
presidency
has
also
weighed
in
on
the
debate,
with
President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa’s
spokesman
George
Charamba
labelling
the
practice
of
taking
on
extra
subjects
as
“illusory
grandeur.”
“Anything
beyond
the
15
points
in
three
subjects
at
A’
Level
is
superfluous
—
a
vanity
flight,”
Charamba
said.
“No
attention
is
given
to
the
needless
pressure
and
stress
on
the
misguided
child,
the
financial
strain
on
parents,
or
the
profligate
misuse
of
time
—
all
without
a
clear
career
path.”