Exam Day

Oh dear me! The weather has been chilly for the last few days! I suppose it is mid-winter but I did not really expect to be cold in Africa! Unfortunately the windows in the library at JPIILITA do not close fully, and it was like doing exams sitting in a refrigerator! Many of the students had anoraks and fleeces with woolly hats pulled down over their ears. I wore a double thickness fleece over my dress and linen jacket. As invigilators David and I were able to walk about, and at one point Jan very kindly brought us a cup of tea, but we were still frozen. I felt very sorry for the students. The first exam comprised eight questions, in answer to which we expected about half a page of A4 I suppose. We decided that they should have to answer all the questions as we want to be able to make as fair a comparison between them all as we can, and if they have all answered the same questions this provides a baseline. We have not started reading and marking yet, but my feeling is that probably this went fairly well. The first person to finish laid down her pen after an hour and a half of the two hour exam, only a few others finished significantly before the end, and most people seemed to be busy writing throughout. I didn't hear too many moans and grumbles after the exam, and after the introductory exam there were many complaints about how much there was to do in the time. I guess this time we pitched it better. The second exam was a bit more experimental. The first question involved reading an observation of a couple of children playing with dolls and then filling in a PLOD chart to suggest activities to support their learning in each of the four domains of the Malawian ECD curriculum, building on their emerging skills. The second question asked students to choose an age group of children i.e. 0-2, 2-3, 3-4, 4-5 or 5-6 years, choose a theme for a month's activities and then fill in a room plan suggesting three activities for each domain of the Malawian Curriculum suitable for that age group and linked to that theme. Two of these activities, which should be from different domains, were then to be planned in further detail. After the exam there were far more complaints! Giacomo reported back that the students he spoke to after the second exam all said that the exam was really hard. I think we may have underrated how difficult it is for our students to apply what they have learned to new situations. Although some of the planning charts we gave them they have seen before, one of them was completely new. However, we shall see!