By SAM PHIRI –

LEAVING an examination room at past 03:00 hours in the morning after enduring the whole day, perhaps on empty stomachs, to sit for an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) practical test, is on its own unthinkable!
What about compounding it further with the infamous load-shedding, inadequacy of computers and the fact that the same pupils had to sit for another examination four hours later the same day when in fact they would have been sleeping or revising some notes?
Think about the security concerns of pupils who might have left school premises and taking a risk of walking back home at such awkward hours!
This is a reality that surrounded the 2015 Grade nine newly introduced ICT examination in mostly Zambian Government schools.
Like a new shoe that would come with a slight pinch, most stakeholders especially parents have found it difficult to stomach the bitter side of the story despite all its positives going ahead.
This well-meant programme has seemingly been eclipsed by the aforementioned negatives triggering massive debates on the poor level of preparedness on the part of the Ministry of General Education.
Leah Sakala, a parent, feels the programme was hurriedly implemented without firstly taking serious assessment on the workability of it all.
“This is a computer age, yes, but it is not right to send soldiers to a battlefront without weapons or inadequate ammunition as was the case in this particular exam, the Ministry must do something about the results of the ICT because the children didn’t put in their best,” she had to say.
One of the candidates who went into the examination room past midnight has confessed to Sunday Times of Zambia that she is not very sure what would come out of the examinations as she was physically and mentally tired the time her group was told to go into the exam room.
“I tried to pour cold water on my head to try and refresh and revitalise myself just before getting into the exam room but that was in vain as I was very hungry and dozing,” she says.
With all this mystification now in the limelight and ever making headlines, blaming fingers have arisen with less solutions talk on the subsequent ICT exams coming in 12 months time.
The Zambia National Union of Teachers (ZNUT) directs its blame on the Government and the Examination Council of Zambia (ECZ) for not heeding to the Union’s advice not to make the computer lessons compulsory.
ZCTU president Newman Bulala says making the ICT compulsory was not workable and that needed some good time to firstly acquire adequate computers for the learners.
“To make it worse, some children in remote schools were seeing computers for the first time as they were only learning theory,” Mr Bulala says.
In throwing in a solution for the future, Mr Bulala believes streamlining the subject to only allow schools with computers to conduct exams while making it optional for those that may not have is a way to go.
He says ICT is a very important curriculum component and that government through a strategic plan should give itself a target of even up to three years to make sure all schools have adequate facilities before making the subject compulsory.
“For now, let it be like Agriculture Science or Technical Drawing where only a few per school would sit for an exam, not until such a time when each and every child will have an access to a computer can we now make it compulsory,” he says.
Chibolya Basic School in Lusaka is one of those that seemingly over-enrolled students to use the school as an examination centre putting more pressure on teachers.
Many pupils who came from private schools that have not been gazetted as examination centres by the ECZ were found at this school waiting for their turn to do their ICT exams.
From a few interviews, after midnight, some pupils expressed disillusionment on the examination process and were clearly pessimistic of even salvaging a pass from it.
Well, it is an open secret and Government through the Ministry of General Education has acknowledged the oversight and through the spokesperson Hilary Chipango has apologised to the nation, parents and pupils.
“The ministry had no intention of forcing pupils to conduct practical ICT exams beyond the stipulated time,” he says as he correctly attributes the delay to the inadequacy of computers in most exam centres coupled with load shedding.
The ministry has, however, appealed for calm stating that measures to make sure such an occurrence does not repeat itself next year are being put in place.
He has some good news though for the worried learners who did these practical exams under difficult circumstances that the results will not be used to determine qualification to Grade 10.
The debate on the issue reached its zenith when a point of order was raised through Chongwe Patriotic Front (PF) Member of Parliament Sylvia Masebo who was seeking the Speaker’s ruling on the matter under review.
Speaker of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini took less time on it as he gave a task to the Minister of General Education as he ruled: “My ruling is that the Minister of General Education will have to issue an appropriate statement at an appropriate time as the examinations are still ongoing.”
The verdict from the Speaker has been made and all eyes are now on the Minister of General Education on what would come out the ministerial statement after the pupils finish their exams.