The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
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The 2023 KCSE candidates, along with schools and parents, are in a state of disbelief and confusion following reports of alleged grade alterations on the KNEC portal.
It has been reported that high-achieving students discovered unexpectedly lower grades, while struggling students saw significant improvements seemingly out of nowhere.
However, the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) has reassured that they have resolved the technical issues leading to the alteration of candidates’ grades in the recently concluded KCSE results.
A KNEC official stated, “There was a technical hitch that has since been rectified, and the same results have been sent to the school portal. Those are the actual results, and principals can download them,” in a phone interview with the Star.
The unexpected turn of events sparked heated debates, inquiries, and chaos within the academic community. Concerned parents have called on the Ministry of Education to clarify and explain the mishap.
“There is a problem with the portal. The morning results are different when we downloaded,” one conversation in a WhatsApp group for parents of a top school expressed.
“We just hope it is corrected before it messes our kids’ future.”
Some parents claimed that results for their children started changing shortly after accessing the system to check the results.
“A concerned parent has shared with me some disturbing news that the KNEC portal has been infiltrated, and the hackers are changing the results,” reads another post.
In one instance, a candidate at Mang’u High School celebrated an impressive A-grade early in the day, only to find a different grade (A-minus to B+) later in the afternoon.
Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu addressed the situation on Monday, revealing that out of the over 9,000 candidates who registered but failed to sit the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education, the ministry has only located 2,000 candidates.
According to data from the Kenya National Examination Council, 9,354 candidates failed to sit for the 2023 KCPE exams, leaving the whereabouts of approximately 7,000 candidates unknown.
“Since the number so far located is small to warrant a national examination, it has been decided that the 2,000 candidates join Form 1 starting January 15 and be allowed to sit qualifying examinations later,” Machogu announced during the KCSE results release at Moi Girls High School, Eldoret.
