MOE Introduces 5 New Tough Rules For KCSE Exams.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) has introduced five new rules to combat cheating in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination.
Speaking on Sunday, March 20, Education Cabinet Secretary Prof George Magoha issued directives to exam center managers in a press statement.
One of the rules seen by Teachersupdates.co.ke requires school gates in exam centres to remain open to allow easy monitoring of all processes in the schools.
Magoha also ordered police officers in charge of exam storage rooms not to leave their posts at any time. They must remain vigilant until the candidates receive the final paper of the day.
“Security officers must sit at positions where they have a full view of the examination materials for the second daily paper as the morning paper is underway,” the statement read in part.
The Education CS directed that supervisors and invigilators not leave the examination rooms for any other purpose while exams were being administered.
Furthermore, teachers who will not be invigilating or supervising the exam on a specific day will not be permitted to enter the institution’s compound.
Teachers who are involved in the preparation of practical exams, on the other hand, are exempt from this rule.
“Centre managers must not allow any unauthorised teacher or staff to hang around the precincts of the school compounds during the examination season.
"Only teachers handling practical subjects will be allowed in examination centres during the days the subjects are taken,” Magoha instructed.
Except for the centre manager and the security officer, mobile phones are still prohibited in examination halls. They will be stored at the former’s office and should only be used in an emergency.
The forthright CS admitted to early exam exposure but denied claims that the national exam had been leaked. He mentioned that officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had busted a swindling ring.
“A few scrupulous people have devised a new dirty trick of opening examination packages a few minutes before the start time, in what we call the “early exposure”.
"A combined team of DCI investigators and Ministry of Education officials has exposed this racket and have arrested masterminds of the early exposure schemes. I repeat: No examination paper has been leaked, none will,” he added.
The DCI apprehended university students who were members of the syndicate this morning.
In an elaborate scheme, the perpetrators were accused of photographing exam papers and then distributing them to individuals to answer the questions.
The hired individuals would then respond to the questions and share their findings with the exam supervisors.
According to police, the four suspects are part of an examination fraud syndicate that has been selling exam questions and answers to students and teachers for a fee.
4 KCSE Exam Fraud Suspects On Telegram Arrested
The syndicate, according to DCI detectives, is made up of school principals, security agents, parents, and college students who use Telegram (cloud-based instant messaging service).
The main suspect has been identified as Gideon Kibet Tanui alias Evans Kipruto, an Information Technology student at Baringo Technical College.
According to police reports, he was apprehended while allegedly administering English paper 2 and Chemistry paper 1 to students at Molo’s Silibwet and Sitoito secondary schools via a Whatsapp group with 70 members.
So far, the detectives have used cyber and digital forensics to intercept tens of messages containing screenshots of the papers under investigation.
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According to police, the exhibits gathered include handwritten answers that will be subjected to forensic document examination at the DCI National Forensic Laboratory to determine the authors.
The four are being held in custody pending further investigation and arraignment.
MOE Introduces 5 New Tough Rules For KCSE Exams
