1st Semester Final Examination Hybrid exams – Lower Secondary

We are now approaching the end of our first semester 2021. Conducting examinations in times of Covid-19 presented a number of challenges for all involved. Many students had difficulties in accessing online examination platform due to the unstable internet connection. Our students had to face the challenges of losing the chance to review or recheck their answers as a result of sudden connection failures. The monitoring system of our invigilators was also hard to manage. There were a number of students who were not able to understand the questions, received inadequate direct support from teachers, where physical distancing rules made face-to-face communication difficult.

Alhamdulillah, Lower Secondary have finally implemented a hybrid examination model to offer a much more efficient and effective process of examination this time. The school was equipped by infrastructure to facilitate a more stable examination platform making it easier for our students to perform their best.

The provision of stable internet was the key factor to enable our students to focus and successfully complete their examinations.

We realised those advantages would not be feasible unless we had also equipped them with clear expectations in terms of rules and regulations. Using a second device such as smartphone connected to zoom or additional webcam or mirror may enable a different approach on how we treat students equally. For the examination this time, students were informed that everybody must use a second device for the examination or they will be removed from zoom and considered not participating in the exam.

We understood that applying the new standard and procedure could be a challenge, with possible disobedience and ignorance from our students. But, alhamdulillah, most students understood the policy and put it in practice during the examinations.

We hope the support can continue, so that we can assess how much we are progressing on how all of us (school and the stakeholders) can manage challenging situations together.