EVERYONE in the education sector is sensitive to results, which serve as a measure of academic achievement. Academic results provide an opportunity to assess what has been accomplished within the education system.

Realizing the objectives of education signals the success of the system, where assessment—primarily through examinations—verifies the suitability or competence of an individual.

The mode of conducting examinations varies depending on the level of education. In primary and secondary schools, significant emphasis is placed on exams that cover the entire syllabus at a given level. These exams measure competencies acquired across several classes and are used to determine a learner’s academic ability. 

In colleges and universities, assessments typically combine coursework and final examinations, dividing the overall score into two parts. This dual approach is justified by the nature of activities involved, such as group work and individual assignments, which carry considerable weight.

The maturity of college or university learners allows for effective execution of group assignments, unlike in primary schools where learning often occurs through guided questioning. University students are capable of engaging in independent study that fosters deeper understanding, which in turn supports the demonstration of competence.

At school level, there is a notable difference between national and internal evaluations. In national examinations, only the final score is considered for certification. 

In contrast, schools often combine scores from multiple assessments to determine a learner’s overall academic performance. This system allows previous performance to influence the current one within the school setting.

In the learning process, the focus is on an individual’s current performance. Teaching and learning are driven by the belief that individuals can improve over time. It is widely accepted that learning involves making mistakes and learning from them. 

Therefore, there should be a system or culture that identifies students who improve and motivates them to continue working hard. Learning involves internalizing behaviours that can improve an individual's quality of life in various ways.

Learners need to experience the benefits of improved performance to stay motivated. Motivation increases when progress can be clearly identified. Learners must see signs of excellence to maintain enthusiasm and effectiveness in learning. 

It is thus important to implement assessment systems that highlight progress, even minor gains, showing what learners have achieved since their last assessment. This encourages continued effort and improvement toward desired outcomes.

Teaching and assessment are interrelated and influence each other. It is important to ensure that assessment methods do not demotivate learners but instead inspire them to put more effort into their studies. A priority should be placed on assessment approaches that reflect a learner’s true academic position. 

For many years, there has been discussion about incorporating continuous assessment into the determination of final performance in national examinations. However, this idea has yet to be implemented, largely due to concerns about its feasibility and potential weaknesses. As a result, final examination scores remain the primary determinant of a learner’s performance.

Since the National Examination Council of Tanzania has relied on final scores in both primary and secondary school assessments for many years, schools should consider adopting a similar approach when preparing learners' results. The use of final scores offers several benefits:

Reflecting actual progress

Using the final score to determine performance shows a learner's true academic achievement. In this system, past performance does not influence the current score. For instance, if a learner did well in a previous exam but performs poorly in the current one, an average score might mask the decline in performance. 

Likewise, if a student has shown improvement but had earlier poor results, their progress would not be fully recognized. This skews the picture of performance, even though the primary interest in teaching and learning is to identify and support improvement. Progress reflects growth in knowledge and helps shape individuals to meet the goals of the curriculum.

Motivating learners:

Effective learning requires both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. When learners see their performance improve, they are encouraged to work harder to reach higher levels. Assessment methods should support and highlight learner progress. Using final scores shows the learner's actual achievement and provides a fair basis for evaluating performance. 

It values the effort shown in moving from a lower to a higher academic level. Learners become demoralized when their final examination results are strong, but their overall report indicates a decline in performance due to the influence of previous weaker scores. Therefore, it is worth reconsidering whether incorporating earlier scores in final results is appropriate.

As time passes, the world evolves in terms of perspectives and priorities. This reality calls on education stakeholders to reconsider how learners' performance is evaluated and presented. The role of the education system is to enable learners to grow and improve. 

There must be ways to recognize and reward student progress, thereby stimulating further learning and promoting better outcomes. Without careful attention to evaluation procedures, there is a risk of overlooking learners with strong academic potential.