KNEC Admits Error: 133 KCPE Candidates Receive Incorrect Marks in Some Subjects

The Kenya National Examination Council has acknowledged that a total of 133 candidates received incorrect marks on the 2023 Kenya Certificate of Primary Education exam.

After utilizing the SMS code 40054, a significant number of schools voiced their disappointment with the outcomes they received, as stated by Knec CEO David Njengere. Knec also received numerous inquiries from candidates who were anxious about their subpar scores, particularly in English and Kiswahili. Following a thorough evaluation of all the appeals, Knec has verified that 133 candidates were genuinely impacted by the mistakes. Njengere guarantees that these issues were promptly resolved and that the results for the affected candidates were appropriately amended.

Njengere further reveals that there were cases where the scores of candidates were mixed up, leading to Kiswahili marks and grades being placed in the section for Kenyan Sign Language. Furthermore, grades in Science, Social Studies, and Religious Education were mistakenly shortened, resulting in the omission of the customary plus (+) and minus (-) signs. It is crucial to acknowledge that these mistakes only affected the SMS results due to configuration problems, as the results on the KNEC portal were correct. Knec swiftly notified the SMS service provider about the issue, and the error in the text messages was promptly rectified.

To ensure accuracy, candidates are advised to personally collect their official provisional results from their respective schools, rather than relying on SMS notifications. They have a 30-day window to address any concerns they may have regarding their results. The Ministry of Education recently announced the release of the 2023 KCPE examination results, which were taken by a total of 1,406,557 candidates. The highest score achieved by a candidate in this year's exams was 428 marks. While releasing the results, Education CS Ezekiel Machogu revealed a decline in overall performance. The number of candidates who scored 400 marks or higher has decreased compared to the previous year, with only 8,523 students accomplishing this impressive feat out of the 1,415,911 who took the exam.

Additionally, the results revealed an increase in the number of candidates scoring between 001 and 099 marks, rising from 724 in 2022 to 2,060 in 2023. Similarly, those who scored between 100 and 199 marks also saw an increase, growing from 296,366 in 2022 to 383,025 in 2023. Consequently, there was an uptick in the number of candidates who scored below the average mark of 250 compared to the previous year. In contrast to 2022, where only six subjects experienced a decrease in performance, this year witnessed a decline in performance across eight different subjects.