UNEB adjusts dates for one-off UCE exams under old curriculum

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) has extended the dates for transition examinations which are organised to give a chance to candidates to sit for the examination under the old curriculum.

The special examination was intended for learners impacted by the transition, encompassing those who failed their UCE examinations in the preceding year, candidates who did not register for the 2023 examination, those who registered but did not sit for finals and adult learners studying independently.

Initially, UNEB had scheduled the one-off examination for June and July 2024. But UNEB Executive Director Dan Odongo says that the exams will now be conducted concurrently with the schedule for candidates studying under the new curriculum. He adds that the registration process for those under the old curriculum will also be conducted concurrently with the regular registration for this year.

“The transition examination based on the Old Curriculum will be conducted at the same time as the 2024 UCE examination based on the New Curriculum, from October to November 2024,” he said in a circular addressed to all District Education Officers.

Uganda Radio Network brought attention to an oversight in the curriculum rollout process in 2022  highlighting a lack of clarity on the transition from the old to the new curriculum and raising concern about the fate of the 2023 UCE repeaters and learners who might have failed to register or attend the examination.

Initially, there was no response to this crucial question, and officials in the ministry dismissed it as a minor oversight that would be rectified. However, as candidates completed their examinations in November 2023, the urgency of the question became more apparent yet, the answer on how the transition process would be handled was not provided.

But a day before the release of the 2023 UCE examination result, the State Minister for Primary Education Joy Moriku Kaducu addressed the matter during parliamentary proceedings and proclaimed that recognizing 2023 as the concluding year of implementing the old curriculum, a “one-off” examination would be conducted as part of the transition to the new curriculum.

However, Odongo points out that after the Board’s discussions with the District Education Officers (DEOs) and additional consultations on the procedures for conducting the UCE transition examination under the old curriculum, it has been determined that the time provided for learners to prepare is insufficient. Consequently, an extension has been deemed necessary.

“The Minister for Education and Sports has now advised that the period between June and July is too short for the repeaters to prepare and then sit for the examination,” Odongo noted.

UNEB had also proposed that districts designate special areas for those affected by the curriculum transition to take the examination, and these locations had already been identified by local governments. However, this approach has also been reevaluated.

Under the revised arrangement, affected individuals will now be encouraged to register at the USE schools they attended previously or those convenient to them. Additionally, functional/existing examination halls will facilitate registrations, along with private schools that have repeaters interested in taking the examination.

In terms of funding, the government has already committed to covering the registration fees for candidates sitting under the old curriculum this year.

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URN